


The Beast Walked Amongst Them

by Beastly-Feasts (MommaVanillaBear)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Sex, Alternate Universe, Eggpreg, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Flesh eating, Imposter AU, M/M, Mpreg, Oviposition, Protective Shiro (Voltron), Tentacles, asexual Keith, mentioned killings, will tag as I go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-12 12:53:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 42,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28510725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MommaVanillaBear/pseuds/Beastly-Feasts
Summary: Since the Garrison began their operations in intergalactic travel and research it was a dream for many to be amongst the elite, to rise through the ranks and explore the far reaches of space. They met many alien species, most willing to help in tradings and safe passage. But not all are friendly. Some simply want to kill. To fuel their blood lust and hunger for flesh.When Lance joined the Garrison he always dreamed of being amongst the elite, and when he was selected to be the Sharpshooter for his crew his soul soared. It was his dreaming coming true, and meeting his fellow crew mate Shirogane Takashi made his heart skip a beat. When Shirogane began to show interest in him Lance could only preen and blush under such kind words and handsome eyes.He didn't know the beast that was under the surface, watching him and wanting to keep him for its own.
Relationships: Alfor/Coran (Voltron), Hunk/Shay (Voltron), Keith & Lance (Voltron), Lance/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 54





	1. The beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, thank you so much for deciding to read this first chapter!  
> This was an idea i simply could not get out of my head and i hope you all enjoy it!  
> Writing mistakes and mispellings will of course be fixed later so please don't rip it apart in the comments.  
> As always, thank you again and stay healthy out there1

Space travel had been the dream of mankind for so long; to be amongst the stars, exploring the far reaches of the galaxy, it was thrilling and enchanting with all the possibilities of the unknown. It took mankind many attempts and decades until the technology was perfected; until they were able to go out farther than the last planet of the solar system and still be able to contact earth. It was a large leap from the moon landing, and each year the technology only advanced. Contact was eventually made with other life forms, docking stations created and intergalactical trade routes formed. Where some were content to continue simply expanding trade routes, there were those who still wanted to explore, to chart and document all life forms and planets, each and every galaxy they could find. 

The Garrison Space Task Force was created for such continuation, hand selecting crews based upon needed abilities and intelligence; to enter the training Academy was the easy part, the school was set up to give anyone and everyone a chance at being able to rise amongst the ranks. Those who were unable to make the cut for explorers were given other options, those who worked in the school themselves and other branches of intelligence. But for the select few who made the cut, those were the men and women who stood amongst the Elite, those that the Garrison nicknamed the Paladins.

The Garrison's official headquarters was located just south of the Chihuahuan desert, a large and plain building from the outside, walls the same color as the sand with tinted windows- that was if on lookers could even get a glance past the large walls constructed to keep any and all unauthorized personnel out. The walls easily stood at thirty feet in height with razor sharp wire looped around, a single pathway leading in that was blocked by both a security guard, armed with a rifle and gate that could only retract into the wall with a password. Behind the guarded walls was a long stretch of road that had a training field on the left and a field of scraggly grass to the right. An unmarked van drove up the single lane driveway, heading to the garage that was connected; the van drove deep underground to be parked amongst other marked and unmarked vehicles alike. The van was large, thickly armored with reinforced walls and tinted, bullet proof windows. Inside sat three cadets in the back and a single driver; a man with ginger colored hair and thick mustache, his eyes a sharp green with bluish gray birthmarks under his eyes on both cheeks. 

The driver's hair was combed back, the man wearing a dark blue uniform that buttoned up the left side of the front, white gloves worn and thick sturdy black boots on his feet. A golden pin of sleek wings forming a V was on his collar as well as two marks of white. Pulling up to park between two similar black vans he looked to his cargo and smiled.

"All right, here we are, everyone. I trust you had a safe journey, again, my name is Coran." He laughed to himself, turning off the vehicle and slipped out to unlock the door to the back, helping each cadet out. He took role calls once more, a way to help keep undesirables from slipping between the cracks. "When i call your name simply put out your hand, i'm going to scan you, it won't hurt, but i do need a piece of your hair and hands out please."

"Yes sir!" Came the sharp reply from the three newly graduated cadets, earning a smile from Coran as he started with the smaller cadet. 

"Katie Holt, also known as Pidge?" Coran spoke, hand out to accept a piece of her hair, bringing it to his scanner while he dragged the scanner along her palm to read it. Pidge, was a short young woman, standing the shortest out of the three cadets with sandy brown hair and sharp brown eyes that watched the world through wire framed lenses; her hair was cut short and her face slim. Freckles marked her cheeks lightly, the jumpsuit she wore a dark forest green with white breast plate and arm guards, an issued gun on her hip. 

"Present!"

Coran nodded, he motioned for her to step aside while he called for the next. "Hunk Garret?" He looked between both the blue clad and yellow clad young men, nodding when the larger one spoke up. Hunk was tall for his age, thick with both natural pudge and muscle he had built up in the academy; his black hair was cut in a shaggy fashion and held back by an orange ribbon. Dressed in an orangish yellow jump suit he wore white armor just as Pidge did, his skin a rich brown and eyes a sharp shade of brown. His face was a bit more rounder than the other man's, nose a soft round. Still, Coran knew the man was more than capable. Coran scanned his palm as well as hair, motioning him to stand with Pidge when he looked to the last one.

"Here!"

"That you are, Hunk. Now, Lance McClain?" Coran cleared his throat, looking to the last young man that had his hands resting in his dark blue jumpsuits pockets, his skin a rich tan and chocolate colored locks kept neatly trimmed, choppy in a deliberately playful manner. Much like Pidge, his cheeks were freckled and his eyes a deep blue; his face slender and body petite. He stood shorter than Hunk, and his nose slightly upturned and sharp. Lance's breast plate made him appear to have a little more bulk than what he naturally had, his gun longer than the issued handgun. A Sharpshooter was what he was called, the one to scope out areas first and hang back to pick off any intruders both human and alien alike. 

Popping a baby blue piece of bubble gum Lance raised his hand lazily, offering both it and a strand of hair. "Yep, you know it. Sharpshooter Lance reporting for duty, Coran." Lance grinned, moving when the man motioned him to do so, falling into line.

"Excellent. I'm going to show you to your quarters first, your belongings have been scanned and ready to be unpacked and decorated as you see fit; you are only here for three weeks however so do keep that in mind. After you will be given a tour of the Garrison station and introduced to your fellow cadets. You all will be a team, you will follow the rules, treat each other with respect, at any time you choose to break your lease, you will forfeit eighty percent of your agreed payment and be black listed from all Garrison programs as well as strictly monitored to ensure you are not a threat to the program. Any questions or those who want to stay behind, please get back in the van and you will be contacted shortly." When none did so he smiled in relief, offering each of them a zipped folder while he led them from the secured garage, bringing them to the lift that would bring them to ground level. 

"I got a question," Lance spoke when the lift doors shut, sealing them in before it moved slugishly upwards. "My payments are supposed to be split, half to me, and half to my family back in Cuba, did my papers go through alright? I want to make sure my Mother and kin are taken care of, you know?"

"Ah, I understand, you want to ensure that everything is set in place before you head out, a very smart thing to do. As you all are aware, these missions you will go on will range from a few months to couple of years, however due to the latest in trans space technology you will still be able to send video calls once a week to your families as well as be able to have options to ship goods once every few months, or when you are near an affiliated space outpost. As you know though we are still working on those channels so be aware some packages may be lost." 

The chiming of the elevator coming to a stop was heard and the doors slow to open, Coran took the lead once again, expecting the three to follow; the corridor he led them down was lit by fluorescent lights and bland. There were no pictures on the white wash walls, the only color coming from a gray tiled floor. There were several doors lining the corridor, three on each side. Each door was the same palish brown with silver plaques that held the names of crew mates positions. The buzzing from the lights was heard in the silence they walked in; Coran came to a stop at the first door that read simply as 'Intelligence.'

"Ah, right this way Mr. Hunk, this room is yours. You have all been hired based on skills you possess. Your job positions are on your door; find it and bring your hands to the scanners, your hand prints will act as your key access, so please try not to lose a limb." He laughed at his joke, motioning for them all to find their doors.

Lance scanned the plaques until he read the one at the end of the hall next to the one that read simply as 'Offense Tactician'. Placing his hand upon the scanner that was built where a handle should be he listened to the light humming and releasing of steam until the door retracted into the side of the wall revealing a simple room. Just like the corridor it was painted a dull white with gray carpeted floor. Pressed to the left wall was a simple bed, not the nicest Lance had ever seen, it looked a little bit bigger than a twin with a plain mattress covered by a fitted white sheet and dark blue blanket. The two pillows appeared flat as paper, he could make it work however.There was a window on the back wall that was practically no bigger than a bread box, it was tinted to keep out the harsh sun rays; to the right part of the room was a simple closet and writing desk, his belongings sat next to the closet, waiting to be unpacked. Lance stepped further into the room to sit down on the bed, the mattress didn't give much cushion, but he truly wasn't expecting much. Looking to the wall by the desk he noticed a star chart of the milky way galaxy alongside one of the ships lay out of where he will be working. On the desk itself lance caught sight of three leather bound books, heading up over to see them. one was a simple dictionary of translated alien languages for him to start learning while another was one to read on his downtime about his jobs further requirements and the schematics of the guns he would be using. The other he found to simply be a diary for him to write in. It wasn't a bad idea, he had a diary at home that he had long since ran out of pages in. 

He wanted to stay and begin unpacking what little he brought, to give the room his own personal touch that it was craving, yet he could hear Coran knocking on his door to alert him that it was time for the touring of the building and to be introduced to the rest of their team. Lance took his zipped folder with him on the way out of the room, looking to Hunk and Pidge with a slight smile and shrug of his shoulders when he fell in line. Much like the corridor they were first brought to, the rest of the facility was bathed in artificial light with white washed walls and cold gray tiles. There were some portraits on the walls when they were led through the inner corridors reserved mostly for the laboratories and research workers, portraits of past founders and captains of crews, all stern faced and hung in plain black frames. When they were brought to the bathing facilities Lance was pleased to at least see they offered both baths and showers, the walls of the room painted a dull blue and tiles to match. Lance only cared that the counter was wide; he had a strict night routine and he needed all the space he could get in front of the mirror. 

The cadets were shown simple training rooms, each based off of what the cadets would need. There was a room for weight lifting, climbing and maneuvering around moving machinery as well as a shooting range that Lance made note to use during his down time. Of course in the same fashion of the building the rooms were all furnished with simply what they would need the most with no extra thought put into beside basic digital clocks on the walls. 

"Ah, I just realized, you weren't given lunch today, my sincerest apologies! Come, i'll show you the cafeteria! I'll have you know what the Garrison lacks in decor, we make up in our culinary! We strive to keep all of you well fed, no matter who walks these halls! The cafeteria does have time schedules, it will be open for approximately two hours during most generic eating hours, not to mention there will be options for snacks during the night and in between lunch and dinner, be aware though your calories will be documented as we need to ensure the health of all of you. We took the time to learn of your eating habits and crafted a menu that will best suit you all!"

The doors to the cafeteria opened with a hiss at their approach, parting aside for them automatically to reveal a large white tiled room with gray painted walls and several tables scattered about, able to hold thirty people from how many chairs were seen all together, the light from outside lit up a patch of table and chairs, a wide window facing out towards the back patch of earth where scraggly grass grew and oil drums could be seen baking in the heat of the sun. When Coran motioned for them to pick a table he revealed a counter that was connected to the wall by a large metal dispenser with many nozzles. 

"Right, now this tablet, you will all scan your hands, your own personal menus will come up, and you can select what you want. The foods are available for whichever meal you prefer, but options will go down throughout the day based on what your calorie intake is and what you have picked already! A handy little thing if i do say so myself." Coran chuckled, scanning his hand on the tablet, tracing his finger up while he looked at the screen, not bothering to look over when he heard the sound of the cafeteira doors opening again with a hiss. "Great! You three are here as well, that will make introductions much easier- oh, and once you select what you wish to eat, the machine produces it. All healthy, organic and prepared onsight by the technology we have perfected through trial and error!" 

A sleek piece of metal was removed at the sound of a soft chiming, a plate brought out with seven red apples as well as plastic cups brought out that he then showed which nozzles supplied which beverage before bringing the treats to them. Coran offered a cheerful smile to the newcomers and motioned them closer to the table where the cadets.  
"It appears we came right on time, Father was taking time to show us around today before you all got here, it's a pleasure to finally meet the rest of our crew, I am hopeful we will all get along swimmingly." A female voice spoke, soft with an english accent; she was tall, much like Lance with warm tanned skin and long white hair that was curled in soft ringlets that cascaded down her back and over her shoulders, her eyes a light blue. She was dressed in a simple plain pink jumpsuit and white breastplate, her hands white gloved and a folder tucked under one arm. "My name is Allura Altea, I am Captain Alfor's daughter and proud to be your navigator and representative of the Garrison communications!"

Lance looked to the woman, she was pretty, in his opinion, a kind smile and face that any magazine would be proud to have her face plastered on the cover, though there was just something about her he couldn't place his finger on. It felt...artificial, as though she were trying so hard to be humble whilst bearing her fathers name with ease. Though perhaps it was because he came from a humble family farm that he didn't have any merit to his name besides what he earned. Lance made room for her to sit beside him, taking the apple he received from Coran and the glass of milk. He gave it a tentative sniff, just to be on the safe side before bringing it to his lips; it tasted like regular milk, a touch sweeter though he could only imagine all the extra nutrients and vitamins they supplied in it. Taking a swig he watched the red jumpsuit clad male looking at them all with narrowed eyes, as though scrutinizing them. Lance vaguely remembered seeing him back at the academy for a bit before he just seemed to vanish; he never had a real chance to talk to the guy, only in passing and he seemed to have the same scowl on his lips that he did now. When Coran motioned for him to speak only then did he relent.

"Name's Keith Kogane, I'm going to be your offensive tactician. Just on the off chance we do come across anything out there that wants us and our kind dead." Keith arched his brow when he noticed Hunks face paling. "What, didn't you listen to our lectures at the academy? It's a wide universe but that doesn't mean everything out there is fine with us exploring it. We want to stay alive and do so? Then we need to know how to fight." He scoffed, his black hair was stark against the red of his jumpsuit, nearly hanging to his shoulders in a mullet style; his purplish hued eyes remained narrowed. It was only when he was lightly cuffed upside the head did he look away from Hunk to flash his teeth at the taller man beside him, taking the apple thrusted into his hands.

"Please don't pay Keith much mind, it is true that we may come across a hostile life form or two, but I assure you, there are hundreds of life forms documented who wish to trade with us and help expand not only their own understanding of the universe but ours as well. My name is Shirogane Takashi, I am your defensive tactician expert, as well as second in command. Namely, I will be helping Keith, and you, err, Lance, Was it? I'll be helping you a lot as you are our Sharpshooter and may need protecting since you'll be first up to target and the last one to sweep out remaining threats. Should we come across any, of course." Shirogane was tall, well built with muscle that his black jumpsuit and white armor plating did little to hide. Much like the rest of them he had a gun on his hip and a black star on his left arm plating. His skin was pale with a pinkish brown scar on his forehead that was barely covered by his black bangs, his hair thick and black on top but thinned to shaved as it went down. His smile was closed lipped and his eyes a warm gray. He took an apple from the plate and leant against the table, taking small, polite bites. When he looked to Lance he nodded his head in greeting. His cologne could be smelt, a warm musky scent. 

Lane smiled back, his cheeks coloring, oh how the man was handsome in his opinion, hitting off all of Lance's turn ons with his low voice and thick muscles. His eyes made him want to hide his face in his hands and all he wanted was to hear Shirogane tell him he was doing a good job, wanting suddenly to remain in the man's goodside, to show him he could be a good sharpshooter- no, he could be the best!

"Well, now that you all got to meet each other, i'll leave you to your own devices for today, rest, work out, bathe or whatever you wish to do. Dinner will be at six o'clock and tomorrow you will be awoken at seven and we'll begin training you further in your fields. My room is located just outside the doors to the left, by the library, If anything at all comes up, do not hesitate to ask. As your crew's medical chief and psychiatric advisor, it is my pleasure to offer assistance at any hour!" Coran bowed deeply, finishing his drink and taking his apple with him on his way from the cafeteria, leaving the newly introduced cadets on their own.

"I was thinking of taking some time to put my room together,i'll see you at dinner?" Lance spoke shyly, though his words were addressed to all of them, his eyes were on Shiroganes, unable to look away until his cheeks felt too hot to handle and he was up from his seat to put the dirty cup into the bin, the rest of his apple tucked into his jumpsuits pocket. 

"I'll actually walk with you,I need to set up my room as well, I should have gotten it done much earlier since we arrived in the morning, but it was just too early to get myself to do it." Shirogane laughed, rubbing the back of his neck; he followed alongside the blue clad cadet, his hands in his pockets. He kept in step with Lance, giving Keith a soft brush when he passed, earning himself a scowl that had Allura chuckling. When they entered the hallway the lights were still bright, Shirogane listened to the gentle hiss of the air conditioners and the hum that came from the lights. He could hear Lance's footsteps following softly by his own, could smell Lance's perfume when he slowed for the other to walk beside him. It reminded him of an ocean breeze and freshly cut coconuts. Lance truly was a lovely sight, one that Shirogane found himself looking at from the corner of his eye when he was sure Lance wasn't focused too much on him. Lance's cheeks were pink and his eyes casted down while he walked. "It's something special, isn't it, to see so many different people coming from all across the world to work together on one goal."

Lance looked to the black clad man for a moment, taking a moment to conjure what to say before he spoke, shrugging his shoulders sheepishly. "Yeah, it really is. So ,many different people, coming from all walks of life, makes you wonder what dreams brought them here, when did they realize they had the passion for it, you know?" Lance smiled, looking to the rooms they passed, feeling a sudden shiver run through him. He had made it his mission in life to join the Garrison and be amongst the stars. He trained hard, studied harder and it was starting to finally pay off! He looked to Shirogane and found the man looking to him thoughtfully, his thin lips resting in a soft smile. "I wanted to be part of the Garrison for as long as I could remember. My Abuela, she told me all the star constellations and we would look through her telescope and talk about what we saw and which planets were where. I promised her that the first planet we visit i'll pick up something for her. And i intend to keep it. They say i'm just a kid from Cuba, but i'm going to prove them wrong. What about you? When did you know that this was where you wanted to be, what you wanted to do?"

Shirogane followed Lance down the hall to where the corridor was for their personal rooms, he gave a soft huff of amusement at seeing their doors next to each other, it made sense his room would be next to Lance's and across the hall from Keith's, he was in charge of them after all. He stopped at his door and leant against it. "Me?" He scratched his chin as though trying to recall the memory. "I suppose back when I was living in Kyoto there was an exhibit on space and the beginning of the Garrison's journeys. They always sounded so...wonderful. I wanted to see it for myself, wanted to be amongst the stars and to do what I felt I was born to do. It's very rare for those from the smaller villages and regions to be picked, but I was able to do a lot of convincing to let myself even be given a chance to be interviewed and try out for the academy. I suppose my actions and abilities spoke for themselves.” He chuckled, moving to give Lance's hand a soft squeeze. "It's been a real pleasure to meet you, Lance, I just know we'll make a great team. I'll come swing by your room to remind you for dinner, yeah?"

"Y-yeah, that sounds great, thank you!" Lance blushed, he swore the other was being much too kind, his hand nearly missing the scanner when he tried to swipe without looking, nearly falling into his room when the door opened,quick to right himself. Lance was never more thankful for a door closing in his life when he was in his room and the door slid behind him, leaving him in the silence and away from gentle gray eyes that seemed to draw him in. "Come on Lance, focus, he was just being nice!"

The room was silent, not that Lance was expecting to hear his neighbor, after all, Garrison was practically a fortress, it made sense that it would have sound proofing. He walked around the room and hummed to himself, thinking what he could do to give it some of his personal touch. Lance took the suitcase from the side of the bed to get out his clothes that he hung up on the wire racks in the closet. He had plenty of uniform issued shorts and tank tops, sweatpants as well as his lucky brown jacket with gold patches and white hood; a gift his Abuela had given him when he had been accepted into the Garrison academy. He tucked away his issued boots and shoes, slipping on a pair of soft blue slippers once she slipped out of his jumpsuit and tugged on a pair of black oversized sweatpants, a white tank top tugged on before he closed his now empty suitcase and tucked it away in the closet. A stuffed shark the size of his forearm was placed on the pillow, it was silver with white underside and button eyes, something to help him sleep. He was notorious for needing a cuddle companion when he slept, yet knowing the dangers of space he didn't dare to bring any of his favorites with him, opting to bring the simple plush toy he bought at the mall the day before he was assigned to the crew. Lance chuckled to himself over the thought of the others finding out, pushing it from his mind, surely it wasn't that unusual for a guy his age to have a stuffed companion. The books were next,his own personal collection- a few worn paper backs he bought from a second hand store to keep his nicer ones at home, were placed up on the desk as well as a thick sketch pad and container of water color pallets and paint brushes. He didn't have much for the walls, but he was able to put up a picture of his family, His mother front and center with him on her right, his sister Veronica on her left, and all his cousins and aunts and uncles. It was a large photograph, and though the frame was a simple black plastic with plexiglass, he couldn't help but think of it as perfect while he flopped down onto his bed, sighing to himself.   
While laying in bed Lance began to wonder what Shirogane was doing next door, was he going through his boxes too? Decorating his room with pictures of his friends and family? Maybe a photograph of a girlfriend?

He groaned at the thought, after all, Shirogane was attractive, it would make sense he would have a girlfriend, someone beautiful and petite, probably long haired and sunny smiles. He probably was missing her already, wanting to go back home to hug and kiss her- why was he doing this to himself! Lance swore under his breath he was going insane by such thoughts and how they circled in his head while he tried to think of something else- kyoto...that was in Japan! He wondered if Shirogane had any interesting pieces of home with him, maybe trinkets, or gadgets, the thought of Shirogane having manga made Lance crack up until he was shaking his head and curled up on his side, willing his thoughts away from the man who was next door. Maybe he would get to talk to him later at dinner, but first, he was tired and needed a nap, and the shark stuffed animal was already tucked up against his chest, just begging him to sleep.

The room Shirogane stood in was cool and dark, he didn't see a need to turn on the overhead light when he had entered his room, merely using the bit of natural light that came from the tinted window. He relaxed his shoulder and cracked his neck, looking about the room, he had already taken what little he brought with him out, his clothing hung up alongside with his boots and slippers, a simple journal and world history book was placed on the desk. He didn't need anything else, no momento's of family or friends, noting that spoke of his time in Kyoto. It wasn't much time really, not in the grand scheme of things. He had spent roughly three years there, establishing a name for himself, getting his face out there until he could earn his way into the Garrison. It was what he wanted most in the world after all, it made his skin tingle and a pleasant shiver go down his spine while he undressed from his jumpsuit, mouth opening wide and teeth flashing in the dim lighting; he moved to the bed to lay upon the firm mattress and thin blankets, naked as the day he was spawned. A long fingered hand stroked through his hair, eyes opening to gaze up at the ceiling whilst he laid on his back and licked his lips, he wondered what Lance was doing. Lance was such a pretty little thing, soft bodied with curves and sweet smelling, he wondered if all of Lance smelt sweet, if the other was sweet tasting. He had to wipe his mouth to keep from drooling. He pondered if Lance had a mate, someone he was writing home to or someone he would be thinking of when he lays in his bed at night. Shirogane growled at the thought, shaking his head. What made him so drawn to the other besides his scent and beauty? 

He didn't know, nor did the room give him answers when he hissed and clenched his jaw. He wanted to know.

He hated not knowing!

In a dozing state Lance was tucked up in his bed, the jet lag had finally caught up with him not to mention the sheer amount of all they had done the last few days and the journey from the airport to the actual facility; it was a lot when it came down to actually doing all of it. Lance's body was appreciating the rest, curled up close with his stuffed shark whilst he dreamt of being amongst the stars, of the adventures they would all go on; he had heard so many stories from past cadets, now senior officers guiding others,it was all so exciting, he couldn't wait!

He could have slept well past dinner and into the night if it wasn't for the knocking on his door, he thought about simply rolling back over and curling up to sleep; the knocking accompanied with his stomach growling however had other plans for him. Getting up off the bed made him groan with the effort, wanting nothing more than to slip back under the covers, the knocking on the door the final push he needed when he strolled over to it, dressed in his pajamas and slippers, letting it open to find himself face to face with the man whom he had been thinking about earlier. 

With cheeks coloring and his eyes wide Lance's scowl slipped from his lips, melting into a shy smile when he tried to simply look to his slipper clad feet, anywhere rather than the man who stood before him dressed in a pair of oversized sweats and tank top, a simple pair of black slippers upon his feet. "Oh! Takashi! I'm sorry, you said you were going to let me know when it was dinner time," he laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck when he heard the chuckle from the other. "I'm sorry, i was actually sleeping, jet lag finally caught up with me, but hey, thanks for waking me up!"

"I can understand, I had to set the alarm on my phone to wake me up." Shirogane chuckled, heading down the corridor with Lance by his side when the other had closed his door.   
"How did you fair, set your room up how you wanted to? The rooms on the shuttle we'll be in are almost the same size of these ones." 

"Yeah, I mean, I didn't want to bring anything too sentimental, because I understand anything can happen up there and I would hate to lose something precious to me, but I was able to set what I did up how I'd like it. What about you? Bring anything extra special that makes you think of home?" Lance teased playfully, giving both Pidge and Hunk a wave when he passed them, the two of them dressed still in their jumpsuits, minus their guns and boots. Pidge raised a brow at the way Lance blushed but merely rolled her eyes. 

"Me? No, not really, just the essentials. I suppose I thought the same as you, I wouldn't want to bring anything that I would possibly lose up there, though I know when we come back on our vacations I'll be able to rest at home with them." Shirogane spoke, not minding the additional cadets behind him, stopping just long enough for the cafeteria doors to open, already spying Keith sitting at a table by himself, eating something from a large bowl with a spoon. He could see Allura at a nearby table, the woman dressed in a pair of long pink sleep shorts and white tank top, a book in hand with her meal left untouched. He soon paid them no mind when he followed Lance up to the tablet, watching the Sharpshooter scan his palm and flick through the list before making his selection. "Would you care to sit with Keith and I for dinner?"

Lance leant back against the wall to wait whilst his meal was prepared, he still didn't fully understand how the meals were made so quickly and supposedly fresh, but the thought of a veggie burger and curly fries was too tempting to pass up. "Sure? I mean, yeah, that would be nice, especially cause you'll be our new boss basically." He chuckled, feeling his stomach churn at how terribly pathetic that sounded. He made himself busy with getting a cup of milk and taking his plate when the tray slot opened on the wall. It appeared like any other veggie burger he would get out in a restaurant, nothing seemed off and the smell had his mouth watering. He waited until Shirogane had his meal of what appeared to be a stirfry before following him to the table Keith was still seated at. He offered Hunk a mouthed apology that the man merely brushed off to show all was well whilst he followed the smaller cadet to where Allura sat. 

At the intrusion of having someone come to his table Keith glanced up from his bowl of soup, a book opened beside him that showed off a simple star map. He gave Shirogane a simple nod of acceptance though gave Lance a raised brow and tight frown. Keith looked to Shirogane as though to ask silently why the other was with them, but received no answer beside a soft hum from the man when he took a bite of his meal, chewing slowly before speaking.

"Keith, you met Lance earlier, the three of us will be working closely together, so I thought it best to make sure we get to know each other before we head out. That way we can learn what we like and dislike, to not step on each other's toes. I believe it will make us into a more orderly unit for when, or if something happens while we our out on service." Shirogane's voice was smooth, kept cheerful while he fiddled with his fork, scooping up cabbage and separating his meal by vegetables into neat little piles. Bringing up a mouthful of rice he once more ate neatly, eyes looking to Keith. "Not to mention, it's good to have a friendship with your fellow cadet. I know it's hard for you to put yourself out there, Keith, but not everyone is a rival." He spoke softly, aware that Lance would still be able to hear him, but his attention was on the mullet haired cadet.

Keith's eyes glanced away at such words whilst his arms crossed over his chest and his breath left him with a silent puff of air that blew his bangs away from his eyes. He refused to make eye contact with either one of them, tapping his boot clad foot under the table; when it was clear they weren't going to leave he relaxed his shoulders and took up his spoon again to dig into his meal of tomato soup, tuning out the lively chatter from the table over, trying his best not to listen to their laughter and natural conversation. "Yeah, whatever, never said you two were my competition or anything, stop assuming that, Shiro."

"Shiro?" Lance asked, tossing a curly fry into his mouth.

"Oh, yes, Shiro. A nickname for when those who do not want to call me Shirogane or Takashi want to address me. It's a nickname i've had for a few years now." Shirogane admitted, accepting the curly fry from Lance when the cuban cadet beside him gave him one, another being tossed to Keith who barely grabbed it in time before it could fall in his lap. "It will also make things easier when we don't have a lot of time to talk. You may start using it now if you'd like, or any other variation of it. I don't really mind."

Lance nodded, tucking into his meal with a soft smile, not seeing the confused look Keith shot them. Keith of course didn't comment or question, going back to his book once more and acting as though the two of them weren't at the table and talking.

The start of a new day found the cadets bleary eyed and half asleep on their feet in the cafeteria while Coran gave them the rundown of their scheduled training. It was a mixture of trust exercises and physically intensive routines that would push the cadets to their limits and see where their weaknesses lie. A soft groan was heard from Lance and Hunk, one that Coran ignored while he handed them documents to read over, paper works about what their tasks would be and where to report when. Lance groaned at the list when he saw how many hours he was scheduled both in the gymnasium and field, each place marked with a list of exercises he was expected to do from core strength to flexibility and muscle training. 

"I expect you all to give it your best! I know you can do it, and as an incentive, I have made sure to stock up on ice cream and brownies for toonight, won't that be swell?" Coran spoke cheerfully, earning a half hearted "yay" from the cadets who rolled their eyes. 

"He knows we aren't five, right?" Pidge mumbled, looking to Lance with a squinty eyed glare when the other laughed.

"Yeah, but hey, ice cream and brownies are still good incentives for anyone, let's just do our best and chow down tonight." He shrugged, digging into his bowl of oatmeal that was doused in maple sugar and banana slices. It was a bit too soupy for his liking but he ate it anyways, shrugging when Pidge called him a twit. Lance tried to be optimistic that it would all be fine, after all, how hard could this be, all he had to do was try his best. 

And oh how he was regretting it by the end of the day.

Lance was aching in ways he never expected. From his mid back down through his glutes and to his ankles; his body was aching from all the crouching he did and side stepping. Squatting well into a hundred or more reps when he was ordered to. Not to mention his back was hurting from how he had to carry his rifle and work through his exercises, told to speed up or slow down depending on the situation they were drilling through. When he was finally able to stop and take a sip of water he was near sobbing with relief at being able to sit back against the wall with his legs kicked out. He didn't care that he was sitting in the dirt, he just needed a breather, unable to take another step. Sweat clung to his soaked bangs and his uniform clung to his body, mostly his back and groin, no doubt that this jumpsuit would end up in the dirty hamper by the evening. Sipping the last of his bottle of water he looked over to the others, noting that Allura and Pidge barely seemed to be working up a sweat with their light exercise, it made sense to him considering they wouldn't be the ones to fight. No doubt the most they would need to do was keep in shape for running away whilst he and the others fought a clear path for them. He almost felt guilty for such bitter thoughts. That was until his back began to ache and cramp when he tried to stand up at the calling of his name. He gazed at Coran with a frown when the man motioned for him to join, watching the way he stumbled to his feet and approached slowly. 

"Ah, my boy, you are doing very well! I must say you are doing far better than our last Sharpshooter, why, you're able to get up, our last one couldn't keep up with half of what you're doing!" Coran chuckled, giving Lance's back a pat that earned him a yelp. "Ah- my apologies, well, that's enough training for today, take your time to unwind, take a bath and a long rest, you earned it!" He reminded him with a soft smile watching the way Lance gave him a mock salute and placed his rifle back in its harness on his back.

Lance didn't need to be told twice that he was dismissed, nor to take a bath, his body was aching and sweating and if the whiff he caught from himself was anything to go by, he smelt foul. He knew he was limping while he walked, his eyes trained ahead rather than to the others who were in various stages of finishing up from their own training. He was never more thankful for central air conditioning than the moment he walked inside and felt the icy breath wash over him. He kept walking even as his body screamed to stop, heading to his room just long enough to grab a pair of sleep pants and tank top. All his mind could think of was the warm bath he was going to take, gods how he wished he had candles, he would make a big date out of it. Still, regardless of candles, he still had a bath bomb left that he planned on using, and did so once he was in the large bathing chambers, turning on the largest and deepest tub’s faucet before dropping the bomb. The whitish yellow fizz that began to come over the water had the scent of honey and cream, the water turning a soft butter yellow while the bomb dissolved. Stepping into the hot water brought a moan from Lance that could only be described as absolutely sinful as he slipped further into the tub, whining when the hot water washed over his skin and began to work on making the aches lessen. He wiggled his toes and sunk deeper until the water was to his shoulders. He wasn't aware anyone else was in the room until he heard a tap from one of the other bathtubs turn on, the sound of running water having him near startled and his cheeks dark from the moans he knew he had been making just seconds before.

"I hope I'm not interrupting, you appeared to be in great pain earlier, I wanted to check up on you and make sure you were okay." Shirogane leant against the tub he was filling, his own hair sticking to his forehead and his cheeks colored from being out in the sun. He added a simple bubble lather to his tub, waiting for it to be at the desired amount before turning the tap off. He turned his back to Lance to offer himself modesty whilst he undressed, the jumpsuit sticking in places due to excess sweat, though he soon shucked it into the wash bin much like Lance had, taking a step into the tub. Shirogane sank up to his chin and sighed, his reaction much less dramatic than Lance's own whilst he felt the water begin to wash away the grime of training, his body able to relax and shift under the water without fear of being seen. Not that he had any doubts that Lance would be proper and keep his eyes to himself. 

"Naw, you're not interrupting, nothing better than a hot bath though. Just makes your worries and aches melt away." Lance murmured, content to close his eyes and lean his head back, the aches in his lower back and ankles throbbing less the more the water was able to work on him. He was thankful it was just the two of them, he was fine with bathing in a room such as this with tubs and open space, but he wasn't up for conversation and Shirogane seemed the same way whilst he soaked in the nearby tub. Lance brought up a towel to begin washing away the sweat, thankful for the deep tubs. He could smell the sweet hint of tea tree oil and lavender wafting up from the water, and for a moment he wondered what Shirogane was using in his own, but thought better than to ask. Lance allowed his worries to float away, staying in the tub well past his fingers pruning, and only when the water began to cool did he get out, wrapping a towel around his waist. He turned his back to the other whilst he toweled off and got dressed in his pajamas.   
Shirogane was out not a moment after Lance, dressed and tossing his towel in the hamper whilst he followed the other out, enjoying the sweet scent wafting off of him. "I was thinking of grabbing a snack from the cafeteria, care to join me?" 

When Lance merely shrugged he headed down the long hallway to the cafeteria where they found several workers milling about the last tables closest to the windows, a few looked up to the cadets but none made any sign for them to come over and talk. It was as though they were in separate worlds, which Lance didn't mind a whole lot, not wanting to spend more time in the room than possible. When he scanned his hand and selected a fruit smoothie he watched Shirogane do the same, the man looking to Lance with a soft smile that made him feel as though he were the only one in the room, special... although he tried not to let it get to his head, Shirogane was probably just being nice. He looked away before he was caught staring or worse, made Shirogane uncomfortable, taking the mango and strawberry smoothie, and following the man out of the room and back down to their quarters, enjoying the silence. They passed Allura and Keith on their way back, both giving a soft nod in passing. Lance wondered if they were going to be taking a bath too, the idea must have been popular amongst all the cadets at the moment. A thought soon plagued Lance's mind, he wondered exactly what Keith's relationship was with Shirogane, they seemed...close from what he saw, but not overly so. 

"Is something on your mind, Lance? You want to come into my room and chat a bit? I don't have much going on at the moment." Shirogane mentioned, placing his hand on the door scanner, stepping aside when Lance nodded and followed him in. The Sharpshooter said not a word of the sparsely decorated room. Everything was simple bland and put away neatly, it almost felt as though Lance were standing in a hotel room, devoid of real character, decorated as though to give the appearance that the other was living there. Though he decided it wasn't fair to think, after all, they had just gotten there the day before, it's not Shirogane's fault he's not as messy as him. 

Taking a seat on Shirogane's bed when he motioned for him, Lance neatly crossed his legs and looked down to his glass, taking a sip whilst he thought what to say. "So...I don't remember seeing you at the academy, though there's a bunch of them scattered around the globe, which one did you attend? I attended the one in Houston, Texas! Man, it was always a riot, we had a few characters come and go, some didn't even last a week, they all thought they were going to be the next captain of the fleet, putting themselves first,   
barely paying attention to the safety of the other cadets. I saw Keith a few times in the hall but didn't see him too much." 

Shirogane sipped his own smoothie and furrowed his brows in thought, leaning back against the wall that served as a headboard. "Me? I attended the Garrison academy in Tokyo for a bit, graduated early and took on the duty of helping the professors internationally. That's why I was with Keith so much, I was tutoring him and helping him learn the ropes. He and I spent a lot of time together in the training halls. I think it's why he trusts me enough to call me a friend. He's not a bad guy once you get to know him; he can be standoffish at first, hell, a bit blunt and rude when you are friends with him, but he has a good heart, you just gotta be patient with him and see through his masks." He placed his cup down alongside Lance's, watching the sharpshooter tap his toes and stretch his hands and arms, cracking his shoulders before groaning. "I take it you're close to Pidge and Hunk?"

"Been that way since I met them in the Garrison academy a couple years ago. Hunk may be built like a tank, but he's really just a teddy bear, he rather be cooking and reading than actually fight. It's amazing all the stuff he knows, hell, he's even taught me a few things about the stars and galaxy that i never dreamed of! And Pidge, talk about a genius, what she lacks in height? She makes up for in brains. I swear she could go to any college she wants, and her inventions, there's nothing she can't make when she puts her mind to it,she built me a custom game boy from spare parts she found in the trash!" Lance laughed and shook his head, smiling when Shirogane looked at him, those warm gray eyes making him melt inside, wanting nothing more than to be the one to keep the man smiling, to earn his praise and gentle smiles. "Sometimes when i get homesick we just make a big bed out of pillows and blankets and relax, i don't know where i would be without them, you know? They keep me level headed when some days I want to give up."

"You sound truly lucky to have such close friends. I hope someday you can consider me one as well." Shirogane spoke gently, reaching out to stroke the hair from Lance's face, his gaze lingering just a moment too long. 

"Y-yeah, of course Kashi!"

Shirogane found that that nickname was one he only wanted Lance to ever use. 

"If you would like to stay here and rest until dinner, I do not mind, Coran has given me a tablet, we can watch something?" Shirogane asked, unsure how to get the other to stay. He was finding himself fond of Lance, the cadet was pretty, his scent was soft and mesmerizing and the other had such pretty eyes and cheeks when he blushed, and when he made soft nervous noises that he no doubt didn't know he made. Shirogane wanted to get to know him even more, to peel through the layers, to find out what really made Lance tick. He could feel himself near salivating, having to wipe his lip nonchalantly, shifting so that he could see him better. 

"I couldn't oppose on you-"

"Is it really opposing on me if I asked you?" Shirogane teased, pulling from the bedside table drawer a simple tablet that he motioned for Lance to join him by the head of the bed. He could smell how Lance's scent thickened, and his heartbeat a touch faster, bringing a smile to his lips, thin and tight. Shirogane pulled up one of the complimentary streaming services and handed it off to the other, leaning back to get comfortable while he watched Lance thumb through the selection before choosing a nature documentary. Shirogane cared not for what they watched, thankful when Lance relaxed and stretched out alongside him, holding the tablet for them to watch. Lance appeared engrossed in the film on wild felines, leaving Shirogane plenty of time to simply observe him, noting the fine splash of freckles on the sharpshooters cheeks and how his hair curled upward at the ends by the nape of his neck. Oh how he wanted to reach out and touch them, to curl them around his fingers and tug; he watched the documentary with just enough attention to take down major information in case Lance asked him anything later. Truly his attention was on the other.

There was just something about Lance that made him want to pounce on him and pin him.

When the documentary came to an end and dinner time fast approaching Lance left Shirogane's room with an embarrassed smile and quick words of gratitude, heading back to his own room to freshen up before they would be expected in the cafeteria with the others. True to what Coran promised, there was in fact ice cream and brownies waiting for them, and though it didn't make the linger ache in his feet go away, Lance found it to be a fair trade for a day of aches and pain.

A gentle breeze swept through the training yard that did little to cool down the cadets who were finishing up their sixth mile of jogging, the sky was overcast but did little to help the desert heat. Already the cadets were becoming accustomed to their new life schedule. Their sixth day of intensive exercise leaving most numb and tired, teaches catching up to them later. 

Seated upon the bench in what little shade the training yard had, Allura sipped from her bottle of water, watching her fellow cadets. She was not expected to run, her job being much more composed than physical defense or labor, she of course ran a mile or two each day merely to stay limber and in shape should she need to flee, and practiced with her aim a few rounds with the sharpshooter. Her schedule was much more lax than the others. Dressed in her pink jumpsuit she watched Shirogane approach, a smile on her lips whilst she made room for him on the bench. "I see that they're already beginning to come together and work as a team. It's promising, i'm sure under your guidance our crew will be one of the strongest that the Garrison has yet to see." Allura watched him take the seat beside her, the man's eyes surveying the dusty yard, watching Lance and Keith come to a stop from their run, no doubt tired and sweating under the hot July heat. “I wasn't sure what I thought of all this, to be honest, but i'm glad to see the garrison really did pick the proper cadets for the job."

Shirogane turned down her offered water bottle, instead choosing to look to the cadets heading inside whilst he listened to Allura begin to discuss the plans for furthering their endurance training and team bonding; the ideas in and of themselves weren't ones he was opposed to, it was just how she talked about it that had him looking to her in confusion. She made it sound as though she wasn't part of the team, above them in a sense. "Allura, I agree with you that we need to be ready when it's our time to head out, but they- we are all just human, we need breaks and pushing ourselves to the point of exhaustion and collapse will only harm us in the end. Let's try and just focus on improving and keeping a steady curve. Patience is key, we will be the team we know we can be. But not if we force it." Pushing himself up from the bench he offered her a shadow of smile, taking his leave to head inside.

He claimed it was to wash up alongside with writing up a report that Coran would check over later that night. Yet watching him walk away Allura couldn't stop the feeling that the other is hiding something.

"Is everything all right, Allura? You're frowning." Coran asked when he took the spot on the bench Shirogane had vacated moments ago when he spied the woman still sitting in her spot, her grip on her water bottle heavy handed, causing the plastic to crinkle when she relaxed. "The cadets really are something, it's been awhile since i've seen a group come together this seamlessly. Your father will be quite proud when he sees them." 

"Coran..." Allura's brows furrowed and her lips pinched whilst she chose her words, deciding against them several times before speaking. "Do you ever just have the feeling that perhaps someone isn't who they seem to be?"

"How so? Is there someone causing you distress?"

She shook her head, it was all so silly in her opinion to get worked up on, she had nothing to go on other than an odd gut feeling. Anyone would laugh should she bring it up, not to mention, the paper work and time it would take to open an official case could prove to be fruitless leaving her with a marked record of paranoia. No, it was best to not say anything, after all, the cadets were fine, and in fact making provement. Why should she mess with it? “No, nothing, just, an odd thought that came to mind, sorry Coran, i didn't mean to make you worry. It is quite hot out, perhaps i should make like the others and head inside, a cool shower and some iced tea will do me a world of good!"

She didn't wait to hear what the man would say, no doubt he would mention what a smart idea it was, she loved Coran, the man was practically an Uncle to her, it was just tiresome to be around someone who was full of energy that practically outshined the sun. She found it best to walk away, heading to the cafeteria on her own, noting that she didn't pass any of her fellow cadets, she could hear soft laughter coming from the bathing room when she passed, certain that Hunk and Pidge were in their chatting with Lance; she pondered for just a moment on where Keth and Shirogan were, she had learned that Keith often timet ook to either sitting in the sauna for a bit after their training exercises or could be found in his room, she had meant to catch up with him on how he was finding everything, but never seemed to find the other in one place for long. She liked her cadets well enough, Hunk and Pidge were easy to keep a conversation with, and she didn't mind Lance when he was rambling on about home or the dreams he had about their future adventures- she felt bad that most of the time she tuned him out. She just didn't seem to click with him. Keith of course was neutral in her opinion, the cadet never talked or stayed around for long, nor was he rude in his leaving, he was simply there, and oftentimes when he would stick around to make the painful small talk it what when Shirogane was around.

Then of course there was Shirogane, the man was kind enough in her opinion, he helped the fellow cadets and even her when she found herself needing the occasional hand; he certainly was handsome, tall and well built, his eyes always able to make her feel noticed whenever he would look to her when he spoke, and his thin lipped smiles seemed to make her heart skip a beat. Then there were things about him that would make her feel uneasy. The way he would gaze for a bit too long at the cadets, the way it felt that he never seemed to blink at times, the first time she noticed she scolded herself for staring, though soon found herself counting the seconds of watching his eyes, noting that the other wasn't blinking for long periods of time and the way silverware wasn't found on his tray when the meal was over and he brought it back. She wondered if perhaps he was bringing them to his room or putting them on other's trays. It didn't make sense and certainly was an odd thing to notice. Though when she thought about it, the one thing that made her give the other a second glance when he walked by was how she could swear the scar on his forehead was gone, only to be back where it had been when she would see him later.  
She wondered what was wrong with her as she tapped in her order on the pad, waiting for her iced tea, looking to the doors when she saw one of the maintenance workers walk in, she barely paid them a glance and would have been on her way once she had her beverage only to be stopped at the bit of crimson staining the bottoms of the workers pants. It wasn't much, in fact if she hadn't have been thinking about all that was going on she probably wouldn't think much about it; she glanced over and saw that his pants had no cuts or scuffs to show that it was his own. She knew from the color it was blood.

"Ah, Miss Allura, good afternoon, how are you feeling?" The worker asked when she was caught staring, her face turning from surprised to that of trained disinterest.

"Good afternoon to you, Mr. Harrison, I have been quite well, how about yourself?" She made a simple motion to him with her hand that wasn't holding her drink. "Did you hurt yourself? You look like you might be bleeding."

The man merely laughed, rubbing the back of his neck, his head shaking. "This? No, no, just was outside cleaning up another one of the damn coyote carcasses, must have gotten a bit of it on myself, I'll have to disinfect these right away."

"Coyote carcass?"

"Oh yeah, been finding one ever so often, usually picked clean save for it’s bones and bloody fur, must be fighting amongst themselves in their pack, will occasionally find one in the back training field, can't have them sitting out in the sun too long though or it'll make the whole yard reek something fierce. Not to mention, don't want other animals snooping around to see what's smelling." The worker once more shook his head, giving Allura another nod. "You take care of yourself Miss Allura and keep up the good work, you are going to make your father and the rest of us so proud!"

Coyote carcass in the back field? That didn't make any sense to her while she headed to one of the tables to sit at, her brows furrowed whilst she sipped on the sweetened iced tea, looking to the tiled ceiling, counting the marks in the first tile she saw. How on earth could a coyote make it over their high fences let alone a pack of them to fight? How did the sensor not alert anyone that there was an intruding animal in the field? 

And to be so thoroughly ripped apart and picked clean, what animal could do such a thing without being seen?

Allura shivered and shook her head to clear it of such thoughts, she clueless to the three eyes that watched her over the security cameras.

Lance had practically fallen asleep inside his tub until the water cooled off, a towel wrapped around his waist once he got out and watched the dritied water rinse down the drain, along with it the aches he felt in his muscles and bones.The bath had done him a world of good, pleasant conversation from Pidge and Hunk furthering his relaxation. He didn't fully understand all that they were saying, they were already beginning to talk in terms for their roles that he couldn't follow, but seeing them happy had him following along as best he could.Their voices helped lull him into a sleep like state. The bathroom was quiet when he left, the other two cadets having left him back to soak longer, though Lance knew if he really wanted to find them that he could go to the library. Lance pondered on going to study for himself, it might be best to learn a bit more about the others roles and what they were learning. He shoved the thought to a back burner, he still had his own guides to read, not to mention practice taking apart his secondary rifle and putting it back together again. He needed to improve his time in rebuilding it, the record was for half a minute, he was still just a few seconds over a minute and a half, he needed the practice if he wanted to at least match the record!

Lance trudged through the corridor back to his room, his hand raised to be scanned when he saw from the corner of his eyes a shadow move. He squinted as best he could when he turned his head to look where he saw only a potted plant; he couldn't shake the feeling someone was watching him. Lance knew full well that the workers of the garrison had full range of the building save for the cadets private rooms, and often he had seen a janitorial staff or maintenance worker walk through the halls, but they were never silent. Some hummed, or whistled, hell even their shoes could be heard despite how quiet they walked. No, had there been a person who decked around the corner they wanted to remain silent. Or, that was what Lance's gut was telling him as he placed a hand on the handle of the gun he kept strapped to his hip even when walking back from the bathing chambers. It was always loaded, always on safety, just for instances like this. The Garrison was a tightly watched facility, but anything could be tampered with, and it only takes one breach of security or miscalculation for there to be a casualty. 

Lance kept the safety on whilst he moved away from his door, slipping silently down the hall, he left his slippers by his door to keep his steps silent. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing straight, and gooseflesh marked his skin; he tried to keep his breathing, feeling his heart beating fast. Turning the corner he stilled at seeing that there was no one there, he looked behind him, shivering when he felt the temperature in the hallway drop, he couldn't hear the hum of the air conditioner which told him that the unit wasn't on despite the fact that he could feel the icy breath. Looking around Lance heard a shuffling up ahead that had his head shooting up to see only a security camera moving. He hadn't seen the tile being moved into place, but his gut told him that something was amiss. Heading To where he knew the control room just outside the cafeteria he stopped in his place, nearly jumping at the voice coming from behind him.

"Lance? Hey, are you okay?"

Lance spun on his heel, his hand to his gun, he could see the startled look in Shirogane's eyes as the man took a step back, hands raised to show he was not a threat. Shirogane was dressed in a pair of slacks and tank top, his hair brushed back. 

"Hey, Lance, take a deep breath, i'm not going to hurt you. It's me, Kashi, remember?" Shirogane spoke softly, his brows furrowing only to relax when he watched Lance heave a sigh and move his hand away from the gun, shoulders slouched.

"Scared the ever living hell out of me..." Lance murmured, arms crossing over his chest while he shook his head to clear it. "Kashi...have you seen anything strange around here?   
Anyone come in or out within the past minute?"

"Only one i've seen is you, Lance." He made a show of looking over Lance's shoulder and behind him. "How about we talk in my room, maybe see what's going on and help you relax? You seem really stressed out right now." 

Lance rocked on the heels of his feet, fighting with himself whilst he bit onto his bottom lip. He didn't know if it was all in his head, part of him wanted to go and try to find out if there was anyone that had been about, whilst a smaller piece whispered it was all in his head and that he was simply paranoid from too many hours of target shooting that week. Looking at Shirogane who still appeared weary he could only smile and nod, following him back to their corridor, opening his own and motioning the taller man inside, making a quick toss of the clothes on his bed into the hamper shoot. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to make you worried. It's just, I swear I felt someone watching me earlier. I went to check it out and couldn't find who it could be, but i just...I know it sounds like i've just been out in the sun too long, but i swear it's not that, i wasn't even outside much today! Someone was there, Kashi."

Shirogane took a seat on Lance's bed, taking a look around the room; he could see a picture of Lance's family on the wall, and a gun that was in pieces on the desk. The room was a bit messy with papers from their issued folders and a few socks and underwear, but nothing that would warrant the room needing to be thoroughly cleaned. Looking to the other cadet, Shirogane rested a hand gently on his knee, offering what he was hoping was a calming thin lipped smile. "Lance, listen to me, if you think someone was there, then I trust your judgement, you've never seemed to be the trigger happy kind of guy. I'll talk to Allura and Coran tonight about it, have them pull up the camera footage and see what was going on. You're not in trouble of course, and I commend you for thinking of the safety of the others enough to head to look to see who was there, you must have been scared.   
But it's going to be okay,i'm here and i'll make sure everything is taken care of."

"Thank you." Lance murmured quietly, his cheeks coloring when he looked to Shirogane, biting his bottom lip whilst he looked to the side. "Would...would you be okay staying for a bit? I just don't want to be alone right now, finally got my tablet to work, we could watch another documentary? There's one about Cuba- my home country that i want to watch, would you stay?"

"Of course, i'll stay as long as you'll have me, Lance." Removing his shoes Shirogane moved up to lay beside Lance like they had done before,Shirogane's eyes on the tablet screen while Lance got the documentary up and playing. Shirogane couldn't help but think Lance smelt so nice laying by him. Like fear and strawberry body wash. 

Lance wasn't sure when he started dozing, the documentary was a majority of things he knew, sprinkled with historical facts that he hadn't known and interesting tidbits about the various villages and cities that took even him by surprise. When he came to he noticed the credits rolling and his head resting on something warm and firm. He thought it odd his pillow was so firm when he had just refluffed it the night before, only for him to jolt up in realization that he was in fact using Shirogane's chest as a pillow. Sitting straight up Lance nearly dropped his tablet to the floor, his cheeks red as a tomato.

"I- I am so sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep or use you as a pillow- please don't report me to Coran!" Lance begged turning to look to the other with wide eyes, fear coursing through him at the thought of the other being offended, or worse, going to Coran to complain of sexual harassment. Lance knew full well that was something the Garrison took seriously, and he could already hear the administrators explaining his expulsion from the cadet rank. A hand on his shoulder calmed him enough to look to the other, his thoughts derailed from all that could go wrong. "I'm sorry-"

"Lance, it's okay, you didn't do anything wrong, if I had a problem with you, I would have moved you or woke you up. Just take a deep breath, just like." Shirogane encouraged, giving Lance's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "It's dinner time, you want to go to the cafeteria with me? Coran mentioned that there's pudding tonight as a bonus treat for our hard work."

Lance only nodded, offering the man a shaky smile while he took his tabet to put it in the charging dock. Slipping on his pale green jacket and slippers he headed out with him, making sure the door locked on the way out. With his hands in his pockets he walked, offering a polite hello to a maintenance worker they passed, noting they merely grunted in a response. Inside the otherwise quiet cafeteria Hunk sat beside Allura and Pidge, talking animatedly with excitement. Lance could only chuckle, good old Hunk could always cheer him up. At the scanner Lance grabbed a meal of fish tacos and a dark purple smoothie, popping the straw in his mouth while he walked to sit with the others, plopping down beside Pidge and waving Shirogane over, noting Keith must be eating in his room. 

"Hey, how's it going, Allura? Feels like i never get the chance to talk to you outside of dinner, you must be really dedicated to the job… not- not that that's a bad thing at all!" Lance rubbed the back of his neck, taking a sip of his smoothie to quiet himself. He respected Allura, thought she was one of the finest leaders they could be given, yet she also made him nervous, she seemed to look at the world through sharp blue eyes she took nothing from anyone, always telling them to get up when they stumbled and pushed them to be the best they could be. When he thought about it, Allura was perfect, just like Shirogane, and that thought was what made him nervous, just imagining the two of them getting together, their perfect smiles and lovely faces, they would be a power couple, Lance could just see it... and that was what he never wanted to see, he felt terribly juvenile, like a child with a crush wanting to make sure the crush never looked to anyone else. He knew he couldn't compete with Allura. Sure he knew he was lovely, thin and feminine in ways a man shouldn't be. He knew Allura could have any man she wanted, and Lance prayed it wouldn't be Shirogane.

Allura glanced from her food to where Lance sat, offering a polite smile, seeming to freeze when she saw the taller man approach the table, nodding to Shirogane as well. She tried not to furrow her brows or scrunch her nose, simply seeing the other made her nervous, she simply couldn't put her finger on it, and she felt terribly guilty. Bringing a napkin to her lips she nodded, clearing her throat softly, she did her best to keep her eyes on Lance. "Ah, yes, I've been a bit preoccupied with making sure everything will be safe for our travels and talking to my father when i can, he's very pleased with the progress we have all been making and is having high hopes of what we will be able to accomplish." Her words were spoken with confidence, eyes steady when she looked to Lance, she could still see Shirogane sitting beside him, a thin lipped smile whilst he nodded softly. "I see you and Shiro have been spending time together, that's good- that's good of course, what with the two of you being in the same field. I...I hope you are getting along well?"

Lance stopped mid bite and furrowed his brow, hearing Allura stutter was new, and seeing the way she worried on her bottom lip and seemed a shade paler had him curious if she was well, it was when she mentioned Shirogane however that he suddenly felt nervous himself. Was she already in a relationship with the man? Was he overstepping boundaries? He had so many questions. He simply chose to nod and finish a taco before speaking further. "Oh, yeah, we've just been watching some documentaries, relaxing after training- being in the same field we gotta stick together you know- but if i'm stepping on any toes-"

"No, not at all!" Allura's cheeks were dark, she looked from Lance to Shirogane and felt her cheeks heat up further at the smirk that was on the man’s lips, gone in a blink of an eye, making her wonder if she had seen it at all. "I think it's wonderful you are bonding! A good bond will make our crew even stronger! I myself have been getting to know Pidge and Hunk better, they're quite the pair!"

Having been made aware of their presence once again Lance turned to his fellow cadets and friends, giving Hunk a smile and Pidge a playful wink. He could see Hunk raise a brow but the man otherwise was silent, mouthing the words that they would talk later, no doubt in private after dinner. 

"You know, if you ever want to watch a documentary with us, you're more than welcome! They have all kinds." Lance spoke around yet another sip of his smoothie, feeling the warmth of a hand on his thigh. He looked to Shirogane however and saw that both of the man's hands were on the sandwich he ate, and when he glanced down there was nothing there, yet he swore he had felt it a moment prior, the ghostly sensation sending shivers down his spine.

"Oh- that's a lovely suggestion,I'm afraid though I'll have to pass. I wouldn't want to intrude-"

"Thank you for understanding, i'm sure there's something else the rest of us can do together." Shirogane's voice was kept polite, when he looked at Allura his eyes were barely a fraction above narrowed and his bites were kept careful and small, he felt a possessive spike go through him at the thought of the woman partaking in their routine they were beginning to develop. Though he offered her a simple smile he could hear her heartbeat stutter in panic, could practically smell it dripping off of her. He glanced to Lance out of the corner of his eye and was pleased to see the other didn't appear to be wanting to argue with him on the matter, on the contrary he seemed almost pleased in a soft kind of way, perhaps Lance hadn't wanted to share their time with her either. Finishing his sandwich Shirogane sat back in his seat and sipped the glass of milk he had, watching Allura squirm with unease after a bit. He watched get up, yet not too fast to raise suspicion as she headed out of the cafeteria, claiming she needed to attend to a few things. Lance didn't move from his spot, merely offering her a pleasant night as did the other two. 

"I think I'll be taking my leave as well, I need to get some documents sorted, will you be wanting to watch another documentary tomorrow?" Shirogane asked, taking up his tray when Lance gave a broad smile and nodded. "Have a pleasant evening you three."

Shirogane ignored the farewells from the other two, merely taking his time to head back to their quarters, walking slow and steady, he could see Allura standing by the window that overlooked the training yard. Seeing his reflection in the glass of the window she turned to face him, arms crossing over her chest. 

"Shiro- you startled me, is there anything I can do for you?"

"Yes, actually." He took a step towards the window, watching her step away when he came to stand beside her, he looked outside, the night was dark and a simple lamp post outside offered a soft yellow glow that kept the training yard from being in total darkness. "I don't know what is going on, but i will speak frankly. You're acting suspicious, I do not know why, and frankly it's making me worry for the fate of our crew. If I've made you uncomfortable I apologize. But we are a crew and need to act as a complete unit. If there's anything you would like to confess, do so now, otherwise, let's pretend this never happened and be at ease."

Allura stopped her hands from fidgeting, her eyes widening and mouth barely stopped from opening. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, the other was accusing her of acting suspicious! How could he speak in such a way when she was already thinking the same of him! With no proof she couldn't go to anyone, and she couldn't say for sure that the other didn't have any evidence to bring up to her father or the board about her own behaviour. She wanted to throw up her hands and ask if he was being serious, but the look in his eyes told her he was dead serious. She felt more helpless than ever before, her eyes down. "I-" What could she say, she was stuck between a rock and a hard place, and the man before her gazed at her with narrowed, unblinking eyes, and again she swore she saw a smirk on his lips when he saw how powerless she was. "I don't have anything to say...I'm sorry Shiro, i must be letting the stress and fatigue get to my head. I will try to be better about it in the future. Please, let us not speak of this again, yes?"

"Of course Allura, I'm glad we could come to an understanding." Shirgane nodded his head and gave her one last look before leaving her at the window, he headed back to his own quarters, a broad smirk on his lips. 

Oh how he loved to see her tremble in fear.

"So, you and Shiro are getting close-"

"Oh please, they're practically making heart eyes at each other." Pidge interrupted the simoan man, rolling her eyes behind her glasses when Hunk opened his mouth and simply shut it, Lance practically spitting out his mouthful of smoothie. "Oh don't try and deny it, i see the way you watch him when you work out together, and how you two have been sneaking into your rooms, from the sound of it, this is going to be a new occurrence, but hey, don't look so panicked, i think he likes you too. I mean, he practically stares at your ass when you squat and run. I swear I saw him lick his lips earlier when you got out of the tub today. Not that i care, but if you are going to be fucked by him, please don't tell me the details."

"Pidge- you can't-you can't just say stuff like that!" Lance cried, his cheeks crimson at her words, barely forming a sentence to defend himself. Lance looked helplessly to Hunk when the other rested a hand on his shoulder, fingers giving him a squeeze. "Oh god, not you too Hunk!"

"I mean, Lance, buddy, I know you for a while now, I know your tells. You like him, and hey, from what i see, he's starting to like you too. This isn't high school and isn't like a job where our off hours are off somewhere else, dating amongst cadets is normal, and as long as you two go and explore your boundaries and not let it affect work, then I personally don't care." Hunk stabbed the last of his chicken, finishing his meal before speaking again. "But like Pidge said, please, for the love of the goddess, if you do end up...intimate, please don't give us the details."

"You're both horrible people and i hope you know that." Lance sighed dramatically, taking his tray up to be disposed of, looking to them with a pout. He couldn't deny it though, his heart skipped a beat to hear that Shirogane was at least attracted to him! Maybe he did have a chance!

"You love us and you know it!" Pidge taunted, following after, the trays disposed of and the three of them walked from the cafeteria. When they passed Allura in the hall she offered no greeting or words, merely staring out the window into the dark field, her eyes down casted. 

She looked defeated.

With each passing day the hours of training increased, the physical aspect was kept the same, a five mile run each day with several hours of obstacle courses, swimming laps when the weather permitted and combat sessions that found Lance and Keith both groaning and sore while Shiogane stood over them, offering them a hand and what they needed to improve on. Added to their already hectic schedules were hours set aside for studying, learning the ins and outs of the ship that they would be working on; with it being classified as a colossus tier, there was more to learn and memorize, maps they had to be able to draw out from memory. They all needed to know the basic mechanical tasks for the up keep. Though Coran encouraged them all by saying how it was a simple task that would help strengthen them in the near future, there were still gorans heard.

"I know it's a lot, and i know it can be a bit tiresome, but trust me, you will thank me in the future! This is going to make our time in space much easier!"

It all came to an end when the last few days of being in the Garrison was coming to an end, the base had been busier with the approaching day of departure, maintenance workers and and other field operatives came and went, never stopping to waste their time on the cadets, always either head down and deep in work or speaking over their communicators.   
The exercises were handled routinely and with each session Coran appeared more nervous and was seen talking to a man just out of sight, often the ginger haired man motioning to a cadet and turning to speak. It was soon made known that Alfor, Allura's father and captain of the Voltron crew, was the one who had been coming and going, stopping only for a minute or two to check on the training before he was needed elsewhere. Just like her father Allura was often in and out of sight, helping Hunk and Pidge in their work and speaking with Coran before needing to be off to talk to the councilman who called for her. 

Through it all, Lance found it was worth the pain order for his dream to be reached. No matter how tired he was after his runs or how his fingers ached from assembling and deconstructing his weapon, he was proud to endure it all. After each day's work he made sure to seek Shirogane out, often finding him outside the bath chambers waiting for him. What nervousness Lance had was melting away each day, no longer turning away while he undressed, after all, they were crew mates, and, as much as Lance's cheeks would heat up, he practically preened at the knowledge that the other was attracted to him. Neither made a move, falling into a simple routine of taking a bath together- though still separate tub, and resting in either of their rooms while watching something before dinner. Lance wouldn’t trade his time with the other for the world.

Laying in bed that night Lance felt his heart beating fast and his hands tremble. There was only one more day before they would be taken to the ship to get everything prepared, it was only a day and handful of hours before their grand journey would begin and he was still nervous. He tried to calm himself, watch something on his table or even play solitaire, but nothing kept his attention for long. Lance tried all he could to get himself to just close his eyes and focus on sleep, but nothing worked. He sat up in bed and briskly kicked off the covers, his heart pounding whilst he got to his feet, slipping on his slippers and tugging on his house coat. He felt much like a child heading to his father after a bad dream, but he couldn't stop his trembling and he knew that if the other was up that he would surely wouldn't mind talking to him, and if he didn't come after the second or third knock then he would find Coran. Still, his cheeks were hot and Lance swore under his breath how childish he was being; he brought up his fist and rapped his knuckles on the door, stepping back. He couldn't hear anything from behind the door until it opened with the hiss of steam that always came from the pressure locks being released, coming face to face with Shirogane who appeared to have been still awake, the man dressed simple in a pair of black pajama pants and beat up shirt, gray eyes wide in seeing Lance standing at his door at such an hour.

"HeyI know it's probably late." Lance shivered, unable to stop his voice from wavering whilst he crossed his arms over his chest, trying to fight the shiver that wracked through him. "I hope you- you weren't sleeping, are you- are you free to talk a bit? If not it's fine, it's not important-"

The man smiled softly and stepped back from the door, motioning for Lance to follow him, when Lance was inside he had the door closed, a bit of light from the lamp on the desk was all that was offered. Shirogane moved to lay on his side in bed, his back pressed to the wall while he motioned for Lance to lay down with him,the dim light of the lamp illuminating just enough of each other to see their faces.

"Hey, shh, it's okay, take a deep breath Lance i'm not going to kick you out, I told you I would be here for you, right?" Shirogane spoke softly, moving to stroke his fingers through Lance's hair when he saw the other yet again shiver, urging him to calm down. When it seemed to help he moved Lance over to him, wrapping his arms around him and holding him close whilst the other slowly melted against him after having gone ramrod straight. "Shh, just focus on my breathing, alright? You must be nervous about tomorrow. Going to see the ship and all, and that's okay, it's okay to be nervous, Lance. This will be a big change for all of us, a big step forward. We'll be seeing where we'll be living and working. There's no shame in being nervous, I was thinking about it earlier, myself. It's exciting as well, to finally see where we'll be. But like we are right now, we'll be together tomorrow as well and if you need to walk beside him, i don't mind. I told you I want to help you however I can, I want to be a support for you. We’re a crew, but not to mention, we’re friends, aren't we, Lance? and friends don't leave each other behind."

"I- i know, it's just- what if you guys realized i'm not the best sharpshooter you thought i was, or what if i mess up and put us in danger, or what if i'm just- I'm scared, Kashi…” Lance whimpered while he nuzzled his face into the curve of the man's neck, he could smell Shirogane's aftershave and the scent of his body washed, he gave his arms a soft squeeze. "I try so hard to prove to you all that i belong among you, but i'm so nervous deep down. I had to fight tooth and nail to show the Garrison I was good enough, and all i can think is what if i'm not, what if we get up there and Allura decides to send me back, the time and money that would be wasted on me would be catastrophic!"

"And what if you go up there with us and you turn out to be better than we even imagined?" Shirogane countered, stroking the back of Lance's neck, fingers stroking up and scratching down the skin carefully. "What if you are one of the best Garrison has ever seen? Lance, you fought tooth and nail to show you belong here, surely if the Garrison didn't believe you could keep it up then you wouldn't be here, but you are. And I'm constantly amazed by all that you've improved on, your tactics, your versability, and your inner strength. Keith doesn't get along with many and yet even he respects you because you showed him what you are capable of. It's frightening to have these doubts. I know you can do it. I'll be right by your side. No matter what happens, i have your back and you have mine, right, sharpshooter?"

When Lance nodded Shirogane could only smile and chuckle. "I'm not going to tell you to go, so how about we watch a movie and you spend the night here, you know, if you want to?" 

Lance swore his heart skipped a beat, he moved back just enough to see Shrirogane's face, the man gazing back at him with a warm smile and kind eyes; had it been anyone else Lance would worry about what the intentions were behind the words, he had none while Shirogane held him he felt safe. He knew the other wouldn't hurt him. "Yeah, i'd like that a lot, Kashi."

It took shifting and moving, but once the lamp on the desk was shut off and the tablet brought over, Lance was laying partially on Shirogane's chest and wondering if this was truly okay, wondering if perhaps he was reading too much into all of this kindness. He couldn't deny it though, Shirogane was warm and solid, allowing himself to be used like a pillow whilst Lance rested his head on his chest. He wanted this moment to last, fearful that he would wake up to find himself in his bed, alone. As if hearing his thoughts 

Shirogane began to stroke his hair and pressed play on the tablet, a documentary starting up about the ocean.

Lance fell asleep with the feeling of fingers stroking through his hair and the sounds of the ocean from the tablet. He was fast asleep and unaware of the tentacles curling around him or the three eyes watching him.

Waking up in the early morning hour everything was silent, the sharpshooter was stirred only by his own internal clock; he was slow to awaken and give up on the tendrils of he dream that he continued to chase until he could no longer grasp or remember much of what he was dreaming. He shifted with his eyes still closed, snuggling into his pillow and stuffed shark, amazed by how firm they had gotten, he sleepily blamed the cheap filling until he cracked open an eye to see that the fault did not lay with the filling, however it was the fact that he was not in his own room and what he laid on was not his pillows. He found himself instead with his head on Shirogane's chest, an arm draped over the man's stomach, his eyes wide at the thought that he had spent all night using the man as a pillow, and that throughout the night they had not shifted away, rather he found that they had shifted closer, one of Shirogane's legs sandwiched between his thighs. Lance looked to the man's face to find Shirogane still asleep, an arm over him keeping Lance from pulling away. He took the time to simply observe the other while he slept, he knew he shouldn't. that he should simply just wake the ther up and tell him that they needed to get ready for the day, instead the sharpshooter merely made himself at home and watched as the other slept. Shirogane appeared so peaceful whilst he slept, his brows relaxed and his mouth opened partially, a slight snore escaping him ever so often. Lance listened to him simply breathe and rested his head down to listen to his heart beat, the gentle beating grounding Lance into accepting the reality of the situation. He could lay here forever if he was allowed; his bladder was soon making itself known by the dull ache he felt and the low growl of his stomach. 

Cursing under his breath Lance soon began to gently shake Shirogane's shoulder, murmuring for the other to awaken. When he didn't move at first Lance spoke louder, feeling his bladder beginning to ache sharper until he was practically wrestling to get out of Shirogane's hold. "Come on- Kashi- wake up!" 

When Shirogane did begin to stir Lance had practically thrown himself out of bed, landing on his rump on the floor, looking at Shirogane with a childish pout and narrowed eyes. He opened his mouth to make a sassy remake only to clench his jaw and push himself up off the floor, high tailing it from the room with a few quick words of "gotta pee- be right back!" before he was out the door. 

Lance's cheeks felt stained red by the time he managed to make it to the bathroom to relieve himself, nearly groaning at the thought that not only had he nearly pissed himself in front of the other and god forbid his bed- but had fallen asleep on him last night and had gone to his room for comfort practically at midnight! Of course Shirogane said they were friends, but he's only known the man for just a little over two and a half weeks, surely that wasn't enough time to make what he did okay because they were 'friends'. 

He washed his hands and made the trek back to his room to get freshened up and dressed in his dark blue jumpsuit, placing his gun into the holster on his hip and carrying his helmet with him under his arm to Shirogane's room. He waited for the man and found him once more opening the door after only a few seconds, already dressed in his matching black suit and helmet in hand. 

"Good Morning Lance, i'm sorry about that little fiasco this morning, I tend to be a deep sleeper, should have given you a heads up, did you sleep well?" Shirogane's voice was rasped with sleep, the door closing behind him as he fell into step with Lance to make their way to the cafeteria, already hearing Coran's loud and chipper voice when the door opened at their arrival, their fellow cadets all in stages of waking up and peering to the ginger haired man who spoke animatedly of their trip to the second base and to the ship that day. 

Coran had barely turned to them when he heard the door open, taking his time to explain to them the procedure of once more scanning them in and bringing them across the desert to where they would be staying at a second garrison facility. There they would be introduced to their ship as well as prepared for their first few moments in space and more indepth of what to expect and how to handle any possibilities they may deem unpleasant. Coran waited just a moment, long enough for Shirogane and Lance to sit down with their meals before he introduced to them the man they had all seen in shadows all week. Introducing the man as Alfor, Coran stepped back in order to let the man step forward.   
Alfor was tall and built sturdy, his skin was the same soft tan as Allura's with short cut silverish white hair that was kept neatly, his eyes a deep blue; he was dressed in a garrison assigned suit, a deep royal blue suit jacket with lighter blue cuffs and medals on the right of the breast coat, each earned for the years he served and journeys he had seen his crew through. His slacks were the same color as the dark blue on his shoulders and his boots black and polished till they shined. His white gloved hands rested behind his back while he looked to the cadets before him, stopping to admire his daughter only for a moment longer than the rest of them before speaking out.

"Cadets, today you will be one step closer to the goals you all share, to help build stronger ties to the galaxies around us, and to go where so many have dreamt of. You have shown your strengths, your ability to learn and cooperate and overcome hurdles that have sent many home. You all should be pleased with not only yourself but the accomplishments you and your fellow cadets have been able to accomplish these past couple of weeks. The Garrison was founded by those who wished to make a difference and to set their goals to the stars above, you follow in their footsteps not only to walk with them, but to walk further than. To walk and let their spirits remain by your side while you push to new heights. After breakfast you will all be scanned and brought to the loading base, there you will be decontaminated and checked over thoroughly, you will be shown the ship and given time to ask any and all questions you may have." Alfor offered a kind smile, clearing his throat softly whilst he brought his hands to rest at his sides. "My cadets, space is what man has always called the final frontier, and though space is a beautiful mistress, she's also ever changing and ever growing and has both beauty and oddities to show us. Her bounty is both rich and terrifying. I say this not to scare you, but to warn you. There are countless species in this wonderful world of ours, countless and ever changing, you will find many who wish to help and who wish to simply observe us as we observe them. But you will also find those who wish not to help those but themselves. Those who kill for fun and those who wish to see the galactic space stations destroyed. You were given a book on all species we know up to date, those who wish to harm us and those who do not. Be cautious cadets, learn from that book as you have learned of the ship and your purpose. Have each other's backs and remember, report anything suspicious you may find. I wish you all a pleasant day and will see you at the dawn launch tomorrow."

When Alfor had retreated from the room alongside Coran and Allura, Lance turned his attention to the remaining cadets, already digging into his bowl of eggs and rice. "So, that's Allura's father? I gotta say, he seems pretty intense."

"Who wouldn't be, you have to remember he was in charge of his own crew, any loss or injury on his crew were reflected onto him, that's a ton of pressure, not to mention, he's got a point, there are species of aliens out there that have made their views on us clear, they think were either a parasite or a source of prey." Pidge spoke between bites of her own meal, focussing partially on the book in front of her. She barely made eye contact, falling back into her studying, the food brought slowly to her mouth while some rice managed to fall down her jumpsuit in her focus on the book. 

Lance rolled his eyes at the sight, smiling to Hunk as the two of them fell into quiet chatter, discussing their assigned tasks that they knew they would be starting once on the ship. When Shirogane had moved to sit beside Keith at the next table over both Hunk and Pidge turned to fix Lance with knowing glances. "Okay, you're doing that thing again- what, do i got egg on my face or something?"

"Seriously? We saw you running out of Shiro's room this morning. Not your room, Shiro's. So spill that tea, what the fuck was up with that?" Pidge demanded, her brows raised as she moved in closer to keep the conversation relatively quiet despite the fact that Shirogane and Keith were at the next table over. 

"Okay, first of all, it's not what you think and don't you dare say that that's what they all say!" Lance shook his head, trying not to blush, he swore his cheeks were going to be permanently red before they even made it to the ship. "I couldn't sleep last night, I was really nervous and Kashi said I could come talk to him if I ever needed anything. So, i went over and we just decided to talk for a bit and watch a movie. Seriously, we didn't sleep together or anything, so get your dirty ass mind out of the gutter. I just needed someone to help me relax and we just kinda ended up falling asleep in his bed. Only reason why i was running from his room was because i had to piss."

Both Hunk and Pidge shared a glance at the explanation but neither seemed particularly convinced. Pidge however allowed the conversation to slide whilst she cleared her throat, motioning for them to remain close. 

"I was talking to one of the maintenance workers and apparently there's some problem going on right now with a coyote pack fighting in the training yard. Remember where we found that torn up patch of grass and dirt where it looked like there was some rust on the grass? Apparently one of the large coyotes has been picking off members of it's own pack and picking the bones clean. I've been looking into the camera's and I can tell you this, whatever the hell that black thing was I saw on the footage, it's way too big to be a coyote and walked away on two legs." Pidge's eyes flashed behind her thin framed glasses, observing the two in front of her with a stern frown. "Not to mention, Coyotes breaking into the training yard just to attack each other? No, this thing had to have lured it in and then killed it."

"Okay, now that is terrifying, so, what are they going to do about it, has anyone actually tried to catch it yet?" Lance asked, shivering at the thought of such a creature roaming the grounds, and the fact that no one has made it an announcement to them made it all the more troubling. Why one earth would the Garrison keep it quiet, if this thing was picking coyotes clean surely it could attack any one of them, and the fact that there was little evidence about it made him wonder if it was in the desert itself or in the base. The thought of a monster in the base at first sounded so juvenile, like a scary story you would tell at bedtime, but the more he thought of it, there was an alien species he read that was known to change shape, surely it was possible it could change it's form to resemble a human and blend in amongst them. But then, wouldn't the scanners pick up on it?

"That's the thing, they tried already to catch it, but it's been so infrequent with it's hunting, but I heard one of the maintenance workers in the garage was attacked, they said they didn't see what attacked them but they're now missing a large part of their leg." Pidge murmured, shaking her head. "I don't know what the hell is going on, but all I can say is I can't wait until we leave the base, I have a bad feeling that something is stalking the halls. But with no proof, what can we do?"

There laid the problem, with no proof none of them could try and open any formal investigation, as much as they wanted to, they had to allow the Garrison to take care of it and keep an eye out. They were going to be leaving that day, it was best just to keep an eye out and watch each other's back. That did very little to keep Lance from being nervous.   
By the time it was ready for moving out each cadet was lined up right outside the elevator doors to the garage, jump suits on and helmets in place. Each cadet had their hands out to be scanned and a piece of hair taken to be put through the machine. Only when they are all accounted for and scanned in did Coran allow them to step into the elevator and be brought down to the garage where once more they were brought to a van. A much larger armored van and ushered in. It was a tight fit, Allura, Pidge, and Hunk in the front row with the tacticians in the back, Shirogane sitting between Lance and Keith. The van was chilly from sitting in the garage for so long, and when Coran started it up and pulled out of the underground garage it gave a lurch that had them near toppling over in their seats before the ginger haired man took control, heading down the drive, stopping just long enough for the gates to open. 

It was a rainy day, the heavens thundered and flashed and the rain came down in heavy droplets. Coran's had the wipers on but still it was hard to see the road with the steam rising from the concrete and the rain unceasing. No radio was played, only soft small talk, most of the cadets kept quiet, focused merely on what little scenery they could see. Several times the van had to slow down when it began to hydroplane and the mud began to creep into the road. Lance's hand sought Shirogane's when the van lurched and fish tailed, calmed by the hand taking his and giving him a light squeeze. Though Lance didn't speak during their travel he did remain close due to impart of Shirogane being broader and taking up more space, though Lance didn't care, he merely enjoyed the warmth, his helmet resting between his legs. It took several hours to get to the next base,the rain still coming down, accompanied by a strong howling rain. Much like the base they had just been at, this one was surrounded by taller walls and double the gates, once pulled through into the underground parking lot the van was parked and once more they were scanned before being allowed to enter the main portion of the building. 

The halls of this Garrison base were sleek with metallic walls and tiled floors, the fluorescent lights bright; there were no windows that they passed, merely long corridors that were locked by double doors that needed Coran's and Allura's hands scanned in order to pass. The cadets were warned to keep their hands off the equipment they passed, and brought to a viewing room where they could see the large expanse of land that made up the Garrison property, reaching far over the horizon where the craggy mountain line was seen, the bursts of lightning lighting up the heavens to show the muddy land and reflecting off the large space shuttle that Coran had cheerfully called The Castle.  
Before any of them could move another step forward they were scanned again, this time by a worker who stood dressed in a pristine white full bodysuit and white face mask that made only their eyes visible. The results of each scan were documented and the figure silent on their way.

"Okay, what the fuck, we can't walk even a damn minute without being scanned? Seriously?" Keith finally spoke up, his arms crossed over his lithe chest, ignoring Shirogane's words to watch his language. Keith casted a glare at the ginger haired man, his foot tapping in annoyance. "Not to mention keeping us in the dark about that coyote issue or whatever you're trying to say it is. We aren't children, we are trained to be able to handle ourselves. If there was or is something at base killing animals and picking them clean, and starting to attack actual workers, shouldn't we have known about it?"

Allura's eyes widened and her gaze went to Coan who appeared to have grown still, the ginger haired man fighting to remain calm and composed, he stepped over to Keith and made to place his hand gently on the cadets shoulder only to be met by a swift smack to his hand. 

"He has a point, if there was something dangerous lurking, why didn't we know? The janitors knew it before we did, and we only know about it because i hacked the camera footage." Pidge's own voice betrayed her mistrust, her eyes looking to the both of them, her brows furrowed. "You two knew about it, didn't you. What a team we are. What happened to having each other's back?"

"I assure you, we wanted to explore all possible explanation as to what it was before we made it known just in case it truly was a coyote, there would be nothing worth upsetting all of you had it turned out to be a simple solution" Allura moved to stand in front of them, her eyes pleading for them to listen and understand. "We were all trained and prepared for the worst case scenarios by the Garrison. The Garrison is constantly having to deal with not only those who want to steal classified secrets but those who wish to sabotage our life's work! There is always the possibility of someone acting as a cadet when in reality they are either a beast or intelligence theft.We scan in order to make sure nothing is amiss, it's a security detail. Please, we are a team, and we will do well! You must understand why we did it."

Eyes glanced from one another, the only ones to remain on Allura were Shirogane's own steely grays, his arms crossed over his chest. He glanced at Keith who still tapped his foot in annoyance, his own eyes narrowed and teeth gritted. To his left he saw Lance looking down to his work polished boots, the sharpshooter, refraining from speaking. 

"We hear you and understand, Allura. For now,let's put this behind us and focus on what we came here to do. But let us not keep secrets going further." Shirogane spoke, stepping forward and turning to look at the cadets that stood behind him, their eyes trained on him. He could see their respect and felt a proud smirk on his lips before turning to speak to Allura. "Let's go see this Castle, I am eager to see what it looks like inside.

"R-right. Right this way!" Coran motioned, his smile returning to his lips though his cheeks were colored with shame, the usual mirth was not seen in his eyes. Allura turned to follow, her stomach churning. She knew she messed up and prayed that she would have a better start tomorrow.

The walkway to the ship was long, kept steady by steel beams, the ship itself was something far more superior than what the cadets had seen based on the original ships used in the beginning of the Garrison's mission. The ship needed four thrusters connected to the bottom, the impressive power would be used to enter orbit and pilot. The walkway was connected to the middle of the impressive ship, and walking alongside his fellow cadets, drenched by rain, Lance could see a few oval windows further up along the base.  
Inside the lights flickered on when they entered, the floors much like the inside of the base were tiled a simple gray, the walls painted a soft blue. They were led down a path of a hallway, wide enough to allow three of them to walk side by side. The plants that were placed up against the walls and landscape paintings did little to make them feel at ease. They were shown a cafeteria, a simple large room with four tables with built in benches on its four sides; Coran made sure to teach them how the trash shoot worked as well as the kitchen attachment, explaining that they would need to prepare their own meals but that there were some frozen meals prepared for just in case as well as standard issued freeze dried snacks and emergency kits. 

"Just add water and presto!" 

Coran tried his best to keep the cadets calm, sensing the jitters from the three youngest, he soon headed to the bathing rooms and a large circular room that would be used for meetings and star charting, showing Hunk and Pidge where their stations will be. In the room was also a long table with high backed chairs, one, at the head of the table, was larger than the others.

"This my dear, is where you will be seated, as our captain it will be you that we look to." Coran motioned for Allura to sit, the pink clad woman slow to move from where she stood with the others. Once she was seated she looked at all of them with a shy smile, resting her hands in her lap. "Look at you, already looking like a proper captain already!"

Coran did not let them dwell in the room long as he began to show them where they could go to exercise and continue their training in down times, bringing them to the lower part of the ship where a pool was located, the scent of chlorine smelt thickly in the air when they approached. Passing by the large glass windows they could see that the pool itself was a large in ground built circle, dials on the wall across from it used to change anything from temperature to jet settings. 

Their rooms were next, just like the Garrison their rooms were located in a long hallway that had them spaced far apart, scanners for their doors were set in once more. The rooms, once opened revealed the same layout as they did in the Garrison save for no windows to look out. Coran explained that their things will be brought on the ship later that night, bringing them to the last room of the tour. 

"This here is the electrical and engineering center. Should you find we need to save electricity, or fix the light settings, you can find it here in these breakers as well as the courses able to be set in the stationed computer. It is relevant however that you must be scanned in to be able to access any of these devices as well as it will only allow emergency changes to charting if done by either Shiro or Allura. Otherwise, you will need one other to scan in beside you and it will be recorded and discussed later!" Coran spoke with a chipper tone, scanning his hand to show the various wires and circuit breakers, showing just how to activate certain protocols. "There will be tasks that will need to be done each and everyday to ensure smooth sailing. Your assigned tablets will show what you will need to do and once you do them they will be checked off, if you are unable to finish all your tasks please come speak to either myself or Allura and we will see what we can do to assist you! Now then, we'll head back to base, and get you all settled into your temporary room, you will be sharing one room tonight, but it will be only for tonight."

"You get the feeling he's treating us like we've never seen a ship chart? Yeah this place is a lot larger than ones we've seen, but still, we aren't babies." Pidge mumbled, walking at the back with Hunk and Lance, looking around while they headed back out. 

"He's just being nice, and it is a big ship, it's going to take time to get used to. Besides, I think that's just how he talks to everyone, isn't this exciting though? We're so close to being up there!" Lance whispered back, keeping pace not to lag too far from Coran and the others. He felt his heart flutter, his dream was closer than ever before, and looking around, taking it all in, he couldn't believe it wasn't a dream. He followed the others off the walkway before heading to the shared room Coran told them about.

It reminded Lance of an infirmary; the cots were made up in white sheets and thin white pillows with curtains that could be pulled around them for privacy. He made note of the metal trays settled on the foot of the bed. A tall woman in white stood in the center of the room, waiting for them, a mask firmly in place that left only her eyes visible. 

"Ah, cadets, right on time, we will begin your physicals before you get too comfortable. Standard procedures. We'll be drawing blood samples, urine samples and cheek swabs, you will step in the next room and get onto the scanner, it simply needs to be stepped on and you will need to stay as still as possible, it will take your blood pressure, weight, as well as temperature and neuro scan. Once this is over and as long as everything checks out, you will be free to do as you please." She motioned to Lance first to sit down on his bed, having him roll up his sleeve.

It wasn't that he was afraid of needles, in fact Lance didn't mind them, however sitting on the cot with the nurse prepping the needle and viles he felt nervous, the eyes of the other cadets came to rest on him, though just as quickly looked away. The room had nothing for anyone to truly focus on besides each other. Lance's eyes closed when he felt the prick of the needle, counting back from a hundred to give himself something to focus on other than the poking and moving until he heard the confirming hum from the nurse that she found the spot, taking the samples she needed. When he reached fifty in his counting the tunrnacite was removed and a bandade pressed over to the spot. A small plastic jar was handed to him to take to the connecting bathroom; in turn each cadet was given the same treatment, blood and urine samples given before they had their mouths swabbed roughly, Hunk gagging as the nurses hand slipped. The next step was a sight to be seen,i n the next room there was a large circular device bolted to the floor, connected by cables and wires to a large screened monitor. The device was raised, requiring each cadet to take a step up onto it. The device hummed and blew warm air up, a light scanned across the surface of the medical scanner, shining a bright light that mapped over their bodies when they stood upon it. Vitals flashed on the minitor reading everything from weight and height to bone density and brain activity. 

Lance knew not how it was able to pick all that up, hell, there was already so much technology he didn't even know how it worked, looking to Pidge and Hunk he saw them wide eyed and moving closer to look at the scanner, asking questions that were answered by the nurse, her tone showing her amusement over their curiosity. Lance wished he could understand what she said, it all went right over his head. Watching the last cadet, Keith, get off the scanner they had been dismissed, heading back to the room that would be housing them for the night.

"Oh, Shiro, before you get too comfortable, might we steal you for a little bit? There are some things we need to go over for tomorrow and your input would be most appreciated." Coran spoke before the man could head to where Lance was. 

"Of course, I will help however I am able." Was the only response he could give, following after both Coran and Allura to a large meeting room where there were set up several holographic screens showing both the solar system and various neighboring ones. There were notes written on a few otherwise blank screens. Coran brought them to the table as he tapped the closest screen to magnify the size, bringing it out in front of them for the three of them to see. "You see, we are in the Milkyway Galaxy, we need to be onroute to the trading post in the Beta Ka glalaxy first. Roughly there are three various paths we can go through, the difference in time will be a few days depending on which one we choose.   
Now, the path through the Tenna asteroid belt will get us there in a roughly five day travel-"

"An asteroid belt, really, Coran? Don't you think that that would be a risk we would want to avoid? There's always the Cragnant route which will take eight days but leave us close to an electrical storm field- father has warned me that that bit of space has been a storm hazard for many a decade now." Allura explained, bringing up a screen to mark off the section she spoke of, her eyes on Shirogane's. She did not trust the man, not one bit, but she had made a promise to be a better leader, and that meant treating all her cadets with respect. "What do you think, Shiro?"

With both sets of eyes on him Shirogane looked quickly down to the charts, taking in where they each had mentioned a route, coming to look at the one that ran between both of their quadrants without being too much of a risk. Though from what he saw it was close to a dying star. He tapped his chin in thought, and furrowed his brow, hunching his shoulders whilst he leant on his arms to look at the maps brought down to the table for him to look over. He could already tell this was going to be a pain in the neck. Bringing the path into closer focus he traced it with his finger, barely a fraction of an inch away from the holopad. He could feel the way the two watched him and had to hold his tongue from telling them to back off while he worked. 

"We could very easily take this path, over here, between the two of them, it would take a little bit longer, roughly a day or two longer than the one Allura pointed out, but if we are able to get through fast enough before the Stella star burns out, we'll be able to miss the blast. Coran, heading through the asteroid belt, though possible, would put strain on our ion cannons and reactor. As well as going so close to the electric storm could fry our hard drives as well as cut through our engines. We can't handle either of those scenarios, but if we can time this right we should be able to simply power through." Shirogane nearly growled when Allura tried to argue for her path, his left eye twitching before he could gain control.

"Yet you can't guarantee that we will be there before that star collapses. At least if we go through the belt we can keep an eye on the storm and move accordingly." Allura argued back, circling her finger around the star. "We don't even know how long we have until it does!"

"I understand you want to do what you think is best, Allura, but I am telling you, a ship as large as The Castle will not only be a large target, but almost impossible to steer how you want it to. We need to think not of the fame it would give us if we do manage to go through there, but of the risk it poses to our crew!" He bit back, standing to full height, aware of the way Allura stood a foot and a half shorter than him, her eyes wide. "Allura, I understand you are nervous and we are your first crew, but if you put us recklessly in danger then we will be your last crew."

Allura's eyes down casted, her hands clenched by her sides. She felt a surge of anger wash over her followed by guilt and shame; what Shirogane had said was true, she would be putting them in danger if they didn't manage to clear the storm. Yet she had read so many times that it was possible, her father would argue that it would be easy enough, and all she wanted to do was make her father proud, to show him that she could do this. Looking to Shirogane she saw the man once more leant over to help Coran continue to plan a route, a surge of anger washing over her by own foolishness before she took action once more, moving to stand back beside Coran as she began to map out their future route.

"Hey, how did it go?" Lance was laying in his cot, head lulled back on his pillow, he brought knees up to rest the tabet on his thighs; his hair ruffled from laying in bed and his jumpsuit was replaced by a pair of jeans and his green jacket zipped up. He looked to Shirogane and watched the man cast him a tired smile, the tactician moving to sit on his own cot, shoulders rolled and neck stretched until he found himself comfortable enough to move onto his side, facing Lance, an arm used as a pillow.

"Well, star charts are all set and we now have a direct route set up to get to the Beta Ka galaxy, from there we will be making a stop at the first galactic trading center, we got some cargo to deliver and will be doing some check ins to make sure they are running smoothly." Shirogane closed his eyes while he moved to lay on his back, listening to the soft music that played off of Lance's tablet. He didn't know Lance listened to instrumentals, it was something he found to be immensely relaxing, he didn't care much for songs with vocals, just the simplicity of instruments was all he needed. "Tomorrow's the big day, you nervous?"

"I was, to be honest, but I remember what you said. We'll be fine.” Lance chuckled, his eyes soon closing while he moved the tablet to the small bedside table that had been brought in earlier. He furrowed his brows in thought. "I keep thinking about the whole thing, the fact that we found out through snooping than actually being told. It makes me wonder, do they not trust us? We're supposed to be a unit, how can we work together if we don't have the basic level of trust. And then...it makes me worried, what if whatever that thing that ate those animals and attacked maintenance...what if it followed us here?"

Shirogane sat up at the mention of the creature, looking to Lance with soft eyes when he saw the way the sharpshooter shivered and looked at him; soft blue eyes looking at him as if pleading for the other to say it was okay. Shirogane couldn't help it, there was just something about Lance that made him want to move over and protect him, wrap him up and keep him close. He refrained from doing so despite how his muscles ached from holding back. "Then, as commander of the team's defense and protection, I will make sure nothing happens to you. I promised you, Lance, I won't let anything happen. We are going to be okay, just trust in me. I won't let anything happen to you when we are finally up there tomorrow."

"You can't promise that, you don't know what could happen. Anything could happen." Lance sighed, chuckling to himself when he looked over, a shiver ran down his spine at how intensely the other was looking at him. 

"I promise you, Lance, nothing will happen to you."

Dawn came much sooner than Lance was expecting, having been awoken by Coran's excited chatter he had nearly fallen out of bed, looking to see the rest of his fellow cadets in various stages of waking up. Of course Allura was already dressed and sitting on her cot, her helmet sitting in her lap whilst she brushed a comb through her thick curls. Lance wanted nothing more than to grumble for another five minutes until suddenly met with his jumpsuit being tossed to him as well as his helmet plopped onto his lap by the ginger haired man that went over the brief morning itinerary of getting dressed, eating a quick meal and heading out for launch!

Dressed behind the safety of his curtain Lance tugged on his boots and combed his hair into place with his fingers, his helmet tucked up under his arm. He yawned softly, his hand out to be scanned , and only when he heard the chime of it being accepted did he head out with the others to the cafeteria for a quick meal of what might be considered oatmeal for some, and a glass of milk that was on the edge of going bad.

"Forgive the tastes, this base isn't usually used for eating, most workers bring their own or call in for delivery! You will have a proper dinner tonight though!" Coran encouraged, seeing the face Keith made when he poked at his bowl of mush. 

"Pretty sure this is considered slop in some places." Keith mumbled to Shirogane when the man sat down beside him, eating with a mere shrug. Much to Keiths disgust and those around him, the oatmeal was a mushy paste with bitter aftertaste and the milk with a slight sour taste that he had to muscle through to drink. Sticking out his tongue in a childish manner Keith pushed the bowl and cup away, turning to the other with a frown. "Don't laugh at me, you can't obviously tell me you enjoy eating this shit."

"Language." He chastised, taking the last bite of oatmeal from his spoon. "And well, it's not...great, but it's certainly not bad. We just need to focus on the tasks ahead and hold out until dinner."

Keith opened his mouth to retort on how the other was delusional; he thought it better to hold his tongue, simply rolling his eyes and taking their dirtied bowls up to the counter where the others had placed theirs, following out the door, knowing that any minute now they would be scanned on last time and taken to the ship, this time to actually head out on their first mission. 

A hushed silence fell over the cadets when they were brought to The Castle and locked into place; the sounds of the air locks locking into place was heard followed by the growl of the engines that began to pick up power as they were fueled, rushing it to the rockets that began to heat up. The words from the Garrison base began to sound as though it were white noise, the beating of their hearts loud in their ears. Lance reached out to take hold of Shirogane's hand, remaining silent when he felt the ship beginning to vibrate and the force from suddenly being shot upwards had him flat against his seat. He smiled to himself when he felt the fingers curl around his, giving him a soft squeeze, reminding him that he was there. Lance breathed as much as he could, trying to steady himself. He lost track of how long he was forced to remain pinned in his seat or how long the blood rushed in his ears and the engines roared all around him. He knew his eyes were shut as he no longer could see the chair in front of him and his vision no longer was swimming. 

When he felt the popping in his ears Lance finally trusted his vision enough to open his eyes, his hand still held onto Shirogane's; he looked around to see the others opening their eyes and taking in the view of the stars, his heart skipping a beat at the sight. With the artificial gravitation turned on he moved to the large window in front of them, eyeing the heavens with wide eyes, the engines having grown to a near silent hum. He felt Shirogane's hand once more slip into his, turning just enough to grin up at the man before looking out once more. He couldn't help but feel at peace, the heavens stretched out in front of him, never ending and beautiful, stars and colors shimmering in the darkness of space. He could hear the others talking but couldn't bring himself to focus on what they were saying.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Shirogane spoke softly, rubbing his thumb softly over Lance's knuckles. He stood by Lance's side,resting his free hand on the large metal rail that was set in place for gazers to lean on. 

"It is...we're finally here..." Lance breathed, turning to him to grin, his eyes glossy with tears. Bringing his hands up to wipe them away he motioned to Shirogane that he was okay when the man appeared alarmed. "I'm...i'm okay, just, pretty emotional, you know? We're finally here. It took so long,i never thought i would actually ever get the chance, and here we are."

"Hey you two, come over here, it's about time we try out the assignments." Allura called out to them, already having a tablet in her hand, having given all but two of them out. When they came over- begrudgingly- she handed them one and showed how to turn it on. "These are all connected to the main data network, whatever task you have will show up each day and as you complete them it will be sent to the network to show it as completed. These can also be used as communicators for when we are out on different tasks. As well as our helmets for when we are out of the ship. Now, Shiro, looks like you're going to be doing some checking up on the engines with Hunk and Pidge, Lance, you're with Keith to check up on the fuel lines, and Coran and I will be sending a message back to base on how our inputs are looking. Give a call if you need anything and we'll meet up at dinner tonight."

"Guess it's just you and me." Lance shrugged, staying back when the others left and he found himself alone with the mullet haired cadet, earning a raised brow. "Yeah, yeah, i'm just making conversation, let's go check out those fuel lines so we can get it over with, i want to head back here to stargaze when we're done."

Following into step with each other Lance pulled up a holo map of the ship, a red line lighting the fastest route to get to the reactor. He could hear Keith's footsteps alongside his own, though the other didn't say much, merely observing and looking to his tablet. Only when they entered the reactor and were able to get to work on following and fixing any snags did Keih break the silence.

"What exactly do you want from Shiro?"

Lance swore he nearly choked on his spit, looking to the other with his brows raised. Tapping on his tablet to alert that half the job was done he tilted his head in thought. "What do i want? I don't-"

"You have been slipping into his room and holding his hand. I'm not blind, you know." Keith answered simply, yet for the life of him, Lance couldn't tell if he was upset or not, it was as if Keith was simply making an observation ,as though he were observing two animals interact. Even his face was neutral when Lance looked at him. 

"I- we've just been talking, nothing much more than that. He's been helping me a lot with my anxiety, as silly as that sounds, and sometimes we just like to watch documentaries." Lance's cheeks colored. "I- you aren't- I mean,, you two aren't a couple are you?"

The silence between them made lance want to puke as Keith merely gazed at him with indifference before shaking his head. 

"Us? No, never. I don't..." Keith looked to the wires in his hands tugged on it in order to get the metal coils to stretch out into place. "I don't have feelings like that, for anyone, I mean. Shiro's like my older brother, been giving me a hand since I met him at the Garrison, and I've come to respect him. I have never seen him wanting to actually get close to someone before which was why i was surprised when he allowed you to get close to him. So i have to ask, what are your intentions with him?"

"My intentions...?" Lance watched Keith work, the red jumpsuit clad cadet finishing up and taped on the tablet to show his job was done, his eyes on Lance's once more, watching him closely. "I just...I just want to be his friend, i don't really have any intentions, i'm not here to harm him i can tell you that, we just,i just thought it would be best to get to know him and you more since we'll be in charge of keeping the other others safe."

At Keith's nodding Lance felt himself relax, offering a hand to help the other up. 

"How about we go walk around, stretch our legs and get familiar with the layout. How does that sound?" Lance clicked the screen of his tablet to pull up a map, projecting it up for the both to gaze at it while they walked. 

After dinner that night Lance had no energy to do anything but fall asleep in his room once everything was unpacked; unlike the beds in the garrison, the one he found himself lying in was plush and warm with thick sheets and blankets, his pillows big enough to hug while he slept. He slept in complete darkness, the room kept comfortably cool whilst he slept under the converse.

A routine soon came to be as their journey through the cosmos began, each day they were assigned tasks to work on and mandatory cleaning and cooking duties that they took turns doing. Lance didn't mind too much, he was raised in a big family and was used to helping out with cleaning and cooking. Each day they were alternating partners in the same field, somedays Lance worked with Keith and some days he worked with Shirogane, and on the days they worked together he was alone; though he didn't mind, keep himself busy by listening to music he was able to have play on his tablet with some help from Pidge in downloading. 

Despite Coran warning to always keep diligent, Lance found that there was so far nothing to fear save for the odd noises in the engine room from the gaskets working and the pipe coils sizzling, all normal according to Pidge and Hunk when he brought it up. If they weren't worried about it so neither was he. 

After the first few days Lance started up watching movies with Shirogane once more, becoming used to seeking the other up to curl up together and watch whatever popped into his recommended. Though part of Lance wondered if he was blurring the line too far between friend and something more, he couldn't find it in himself to ask, not wanting to have Shirogane push him away if he realized that what they were doing was considered a bit more...intimate than what others usually allowed friends to do. And if he found himself smiling to himself whenever Allura would watch them walk away, well, he tried not to think too much of himself, after all, Shirogane chose him to spend time with. Not her.

"Just need to check on the engine room and that will be the last of that." Lance mumbled to himself, having finished up taking care of the smaller asteroids that been been creeping closer, now they were no more than dust in space thanks to the ion cannon, it was almost fun if he had to admit, like playing a game of making sure he shot each one of them before they got to close to collide. He had passed by Keith and Hunk earlier, the two having already finished their assignments for the day, and the smell of grilled cheese and soup was making his stomach growl; he could have easily called for a lunch break but he was already so close to being done with his tasks!

Turning into the engine room Lance noticed a light already on, a small light that came from further into the room as though the person was wearing a headlamp. He knew he saw Allura wearing one earlier. Heading towards where the light was coming from he stopped at seeing a shadow beginning to move, just from the size alone he knew it was not his own, and the sudden scream had him dashing towards where he heard the clatter of a helmet meeting the floor. With his gun out and aimed he moved around the piled up crates; he stilled at the sight before him. 

Standing in front of him, only illuminated by the head lamp that was beginning to flicker, was Shirogane, his eyes were gazing at Lance's own, wide with surprise, but from what Lance could see, and what made his blood run cold was the fact there was a third eye shown from behind Shirogane's bangs and his mouth remained opened, wide enough to show knife like teeth and a forked tongue. 

Too panicked to even think of what to say Lance whined when Shirogane regained his composure and closed his mouth, taking a step towards him. From what Lance could see, Allura was still breathing, her suit was intact and there was blood seeping from one of her ears and nose.

"I really wish you hadn't seen that."


	2. Amongst the Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, thank you so much for deciding to read this story, I am having a lot of fun writing this and bringing this idea to life. Not to mention the kind words you all send makes me extremely happy!
> 
> Please note this story has a lot of made up sci-fi, it is not scientifically accurate at all so please don't be too nit picky.   
> This chapter does contain:  
> -mentioned killing/eating of live prey  
> -non graphic raw meat eating  
> -description of alien biology for those who are squeemish
> 
> All spelling and grammar will be fixed, this was essentially written on notepad with no spell check.
> 
> Also, it's been very cold out, so please remember, if you adopt an animal, please don't leave them out in the cold! Because while i write this, my adopted kitty is sleeping on my lap and all i can think about are the animals out in the cold. So if you're cold, so are you fur babies!

"I wish you hadn't seen that."

The words echoed in Lance's mind, his eyes wide and hands shook while he held his gun and tried hard not to vomit; he felt as though he were stuck in a nightmare, staring into the three gray eyes of the man he had came to admire, the man he wanted to hold hands with and curl up in bed with at night. The man who held him when his panic attacks were plaguing him; now, instead, he was standing there partially in the dark and wondering if Shirogane was a man at all, if he even had a gender. Part of him wanted to laugh, to scream how this was absurd and would be waking up any minute now in bed and would laugh this over with the other. No matter how hard he bit his lip, he didn't wake up, and Shirogane was beginning to step towards him, head cocking to the side as if in thought, his eyes never leaving Lance's own. 

"Put down the gun Lance, it's me, Kashi. Just put down the gun, we can talk." His voice was low, raspy with sharp teeth flashing in the dull light. Lance never put his gun down, aiming it still at the other, though he knew the safety was still on and that the last thing on his mind was shooting him. "Please Lance."

"What- what did you do to her? What did you do to Allura?!" Lance finally shouted when he found his voice, shaking his head to steel his resolve. "Stop! Stop coming closer or i'll shoot you! Please, please Kashi, tell me what you did to her."

"I didn't kill her if that's what you're thinking. Just managed to knock her out." Shirogane looked at Allura's body, sure enough she was breathing, her chest rising and falling shallowly whilst her body laid otherwise eerily still, blood still trickling sluggishly. 

"This is..." Lance's voice shook, he wondered if he was going to die. Would Shirogane eat him along with Allura?

Or kill him slowly and leave his body to rot in a crate? 

"Okay...i'm...i'm going to trust you not to eat me. You want to talk? Fine, we'll talk.But not here, I trust you, gods fucking damnit I shouldn't but I do! We are going to my room, but first I'm going to call Coran to come pick up Allura to bring her to Medical Bay, but if you make so much as one wrong move, I'm going to kill you. Do you understand me?!"

Shirogane's third eye closed and his body morphed to that of the one Lance had come to know, he placed his hands up, though he looked to Allura in forlorn, whether it was due to what he had been about to do or because he wanted to eat her Lance didn't know and didn't want to know. Shirogane watched Lance take his communicator and plug it into the side of the helmet, his voice calm whilst he waited for the humming of a connection, the voice of Coran gentle when he answered.

"Ah, Lance, my boy, I see you are finished with your tasks for the day, is there something you need? I was just about to do a sweep of the ship to ensure everything is all in order." Coran's voice was chipper, and Lance couldn't help but flinch when he heard how happy he was. He hated that he had to break it.

He knew Shirogane was watching him intently, the other knew if the other cadet’s found out that he would be either locked away until they could drop him off at a galactic trading post, or thrown into the cold depths of space. Lance tried not to picture that. "Coran, hey, in the Engine room, listen I...I found Allura, it looks like she tripped over some wires and hit her head. She's near the back and bleeding, she's unconscious but I think otherwise she is fine, doesn't look like any broken limbs. I think she'll need a scan to make sure her head is okay. I know Shiro is nearby...finishing a task. I'm going to have him help me bring her to the medical bay and have you take over since you're the doctor here. Can you meet us there?"

The pause had Lance looking to Shirogane, a sigh of relief escaping him when he saw the other was still where he had last been standing. Lance waited for Coran to answer, the line having gone silent for several long moments before the man answered.

"Yes, Yes of course my boy, thank you for contacting me immediately, I know she'll be in good hands until I get there. Thank you for looking out for her. I'll see you and Shiro at the med bay. Coran out."

With the line having gone dead Lance turned his attention fully on the man before him, his eyes narrowed and his words cold whilst he stepped forward, placing the gun back into its holster. "Kashi...No, Shiro, if you truly ever valued my friendship you will help me bring her to the medical bay and you will not harm her or I, understand? Coran knows you are with me, if he finds me or Allua missing, or worse, he will put you on trial with the others. Do you understand me? I'm trusting you, don't make me regret it."

The Sharpshooter moved over to where Allura laid and winced at the bruise on her cheek that was beginning to blossom, there was also an impressive one growing around her left eye, Lance didn't doubt that it would be an impressive bruise for a week or two. Taking her by the arms he carefully positioned her so that she was leaning on his chest; she didn't stir, her body slack, reminding him of a doll. When he felt the other pick her up by the legs he began to walk, careful to not trip over the wires, offering her a soft shush when the woman in his arms groaned but otherwise made no motion or sound, her bleeding continued, and too Lance's horror he found Shirogane staring at it with eyes that spoke of cold hunger. Still, he forced himself to walk with him to the medical bay that was located down the hall past the cafeteria where he knew the others would be eating their lunch. No doubt Coran would have mentioned to them that Allura had been injured, they would probably wait until they knew more concrete details before going to check on her. No reason to make the medical bay over crowded when it was already on the smaller side. 

The doors opened with a hiss of steam, the scent of cleaning disinfectant and steel thick in the air, it reminded Lance of any other hospital wing, white walls and polished floors with several beds for sick crew mates to lay on as well as monitors and scanners. There was practically a pharmacy towards the back where Coran was standing with a hand scanner and an IV prepped and waiting, the ginger haired man dressed in blue with his hair combed back and sanitized gloves on. 

"Put her down on the bed please. Before you go, I need to know exactly what you saw, we need to write up an incident report and send it to the Garrison, standard procedures, you understand." Coran waited until Allura was settled down upon the nearest cot before making his way to her, carefully removing her cracked helmet to observe her face closely, finger tips tracing the bruising that formed. He stroked the hair away from her ears after he had examined her face. The scanner hummed, a recorder coming up on the tablet he propped on the cot. "Just speak when you're ready, this will record it and i'll write it up later. Now, for injuries i'm seeing several bruises on her face, one over her eye, no sign of eye trauma. Along her cheek and down her jaw. A tooth has been chipped but otherwise no bleeding of the mouth. Laceration on her ears but otherwise bleeding is stopping. Nose is not broken, may need to be cauterized." Coran ran the scanner over the injured cadet's head, speaking aloud of what he saw, stopping when he scanned her forehead, doing so again before murmuring. "Concussion not severe but will need to awoken soon and monitored for nausea and dizziness. Now Lance, can you tell me what happened? What exactly did you see?"

"What I saw, exactly?" Lance internally flinched at how quiet his words came out, his brows furrowing when the ginger haired man's eyes looked to his.

"Yes, it's very important in treatment and for the Garrison incident report in order to ensure consistency. Don't be shy, my boy, i'll be writing this down later, and i'll leave out any stuttering and 'um's." He teased good naturedly despite the situation, gloved hands stroked through Allura's hair, the man checking her head with his fingers for any bumps or further abrasions, waiting for Lance to speak.

"I- yeah that makes sense, okay." The sharpshooter mumbled, his hands itching to fidget with anything in his reach, he chose to clasp his hands behind his back, standing tensely beside the black clad cadet, to anyone looking at him they would assume he was simply upset over Allura being hurt rather than scared shitless about the man who stood beside him. Shirogane's hand moved to hold onto Lance's, and for a moment the Sharpshooter contemplated smacking his hand away, yet muscle memory had him moving to hold Shirogane's hand back, giving the strong fingers a squeeze that the man returned. It scared him how safe he felt holding hands with...with the monster beside him while his captain was laying still; she still breathed yet she was also still bleeding. "I was heading into the room in order to check up on a few things, I knew Allura was doing some work in there and I wanted to see how close she was to being done with her task. When I went in it was dark, I only knew where she was because of the light she had on her...She looked like she had fallen over the wires, you know how much of a tripping hazard they are when you're focused on the task at hand. She was laying out on her back. I think she might have tripped and her knees buckled? Probably fell sideways and tried to hold onto the wall but she just slid down? I wasn’t there when she fell though, it’s all speculation."

He could feel eyes on him from both Shirogane and Coran, he wanted to throw up over the lies he was laying out, he still didn't fully understand why he was helping Shirogane out, he should be telling the truth on him and locking him away!

The gentle squeeze to his fingers urged him onwards and much to his sorrow, he began to speak again. He couldn't make eye contact with either one of them. "She was bleeding from her ear and it looked like her nose, I don't know if she hit her head hard enough to cause a blood vessel to break, but I could see she was still breathing. I decided to call you, I knew I couldn't protect- I couldn't carry her here by myself and shouted for Shirogane to come help me, I knew he was in the area. We brought her here. God damnit..i should have checked her pulse or broken bones before moving her!"

"Hey, hey, it's okay, you did the best you could do, and we owe you a great deal of gratitude for this, had you not have found her, who knows how long she would have laid out there or what might have happened. You did the best you could do, and I thank you, Shiro, for helping him bring her here. I'm going to run a few more scans over the next hour simply to monitor her and try to wake her up in a few minutes, but for now, go. Take a break, eat some lunch, and relax. She's in capable hands now." Coran brought the tablet away from where he had rested it near Lance, speaking the date and time before he motioned for them to head on out, his back turning to Allura whilst he started up an I.V to be administered. 

Lance stayed just a moment longer before turning on his heel, tugging Shirogane along the way, his mouth formed in a hard line and eyes narrowed with anger and frustration while he headed down the hall away from the medical bay and cafeteria. He headed straight for the corridor with their rooms; he slapped his hand against the scanner of his door with his free hand and shoved Shirogane in once the door opened, letting it close with a hiss behind him. He made quick work of setting up the lock, letting Shirogane's hand go and shoving him as hard as he could, the man must not have been expecting such force for he was soon found on his backside, having hit the ground with a thud and his back hitting the bed. He hated to do it but Lance had his gun out again, his stance still shaky but he refused to show truy how terrified he was, unaware that Shirogane could smell it in the air and taste it when he opened his mouth slightly, as if to speak, being cut off before he could.

"You're going to answer my questions and stay where you are. Try to get up and I'll shoot your kneecaps. If you have one that is. Got it?" When he saw Shirogane nod he sighed, keeping his eyes on the other, his helmet removed and propped on his hip whilst he leaned back against the wall, gun still in hand and aimed at the other's knee. "Tell me, are you Shirogane Takashi? Were you the one in the base- in the academy wearing his face and using his voice? Is there even a real Shiro or is this all just a name and appearance you made? Show your real form to me, stop pretending to be human and show me!" 

Lance watched in horrified fascination as Shirogane looked to him, three eyes showing, one from the forehead that was revealed to be where the 'scar' was, Lance now understood it had been a tightly closed eye. Shirogane's mouth opened wider than a humans to reveal knife sharp teeth and forked tongue, his hands becomining sharp nailed to the point they resembled claws while he pulled down the zipper of his suit to reveal a human like torso, tentacles protruding the from center of his belly from a mouth like opening. They were the same color in the base that became a purplish black the further along they went up to the tip where they were black as coal; there were no suction cups like a squid, nor ridges, they moved softly in a sway, as though not sure how exactly to move without being shot at. Shirogane's eyes looked at him, his ears appeared sharper, his skin a paler color that reminded him of plain porridge, a sickly grayish tan. Lance could see after looking a bit closer- the gun still trained that the tentacles came from a mouth like opening on Shirogane's stomach, that did in fact possess smaller teeth deeper inside.. He thought about whether or not the other could use it to eat, but thought it better to not think about it, a shiver running down his spine while a tentacle reached out to touch him, almost caressing his arm before he slapped it away, almost whining at the way Shirogane winced as if it had hurt far more than Lance could imagine a light smack could be. 

"My name is Shirogane Takashi. There was no one else with that name, no family in japan that could claim they had a relative with that name. I was inspired by an old comic series, one obscured enough that I could use without others giving me a hard time. I wasn't given a name when I was spawned, it's not in my species nature to give names. We make and earn them ourselves. We don't care for our young like you humans do. I had to learn to blend in with the humans, had to learn how to create a family registry and forge documents. I had to create a background that no one could tear apart. We all do if we want to blend in around humans well enough." Shirogane looked to his clawed hands, looking to Lance with his third eye, spying the hesitance in the sharpshooters form, the tightness in his core. He could smell his fear, salty and bitter, a scent he never wanted to be the cause of. "I grew up alone, I ate what I could to survive, whether it was trash, strays or runaways. I ran into others, but never long enough to form an attachment, with our kind, it's eat or be eaten. It was I who went to the garrison academy, and was I in the base."

At the answers he heard Lance could feel himself becoming torn; he felt relief at the thought that the other hadn't killed someone to take their identity, and an even greater relief to know that the experience he had at the Garrison was with him and not someone else who was now dead. Yet then came the distrust. It coiled inside him, nearly choking him whilst he swallowed and forced his aim to be steady, not letting the other move more than an inch before telling him to back off and stay down. 

"Eat or be eaten...there's a lot more of you? You blend in to eat humans? Is that it, are we a tasty snack to you?" Lace asked, laughing bitterly, his eyes narrowed. "What about the academy, how many students did you eat? How many coyote's did you kill in the yard? And Allura...you were going to eat her, right? You were going to eat her and then me? Were you just going to pick us off one by one?!"

"I wasn't going to eat you! I would never you!" Shirogane snapped, raising his hands in surrender when Lance aimed at his head, having realized he had just about gotten to his feet to approach the sharpshooter. He forced himself to stay down and still, looking to Lance's eyes that appear glossy, he could smell the tears about to form, the stench of fear and anger thick in the air that made him want to gag, he wanted this to be over, to simply hold the other and make Lance smell sweet again. Sweet and calming. It amazed him, never had he ever found someone that made him relaxed. Usually human scents either disgusted him with their vile scents or the occasional indifference. Some however smelt tasty, and those he ate, he was only going to eat Allura due to her suspicions of him. He thankfully thought better than to blurt it out. "Lance...listen to me, I would never eat you, your scent...it's unlike any i have ever smelt before. It's calming, it makes me feel relaxed, it makes the ever constant hunger i feel vanish whenever i'm close to you. I ate those of my kind, yes, it's in our nature to be stronger. It's a eat or be eaten world us pure blooded ones have. As for students, I never ate any of them. I ate plenty of human food, even trash and metal when the hunger got too much, but it was my dream to join the Garrison, I thought maybe if i could go to space and find my own niche then i could leave Earth behind with its confusing rules and mannerisms."

Shirogane's eyes looked down, he slowly zipped up his jumpsuit, forcing his tentacles to shorten and soon retract into his body, his skin practically melting to hide the mouth, leaving nothing but a scar like blemish that hid them inside. "At the base...i was hungry, more so than usual with anticipation, i lured out coyotes with rotting meat and i'll admit in my hunger i ate them and left their remains. For the maintenance worker...I was just so hungry... you need to believe me, Lance, there are some of my kind still on earth, but we aren't taking over humanity,that's not what we are instinctively made to do. We don't concur other planets. We are loners. I wish i could make you believe me."

"Keep talking, you didn't answer all my questions." Lance whispered, biting his bottom lip, moving his gun to simply hold it by his hip, the safety clicked back on whilst he slid it into his holster.

"Allura...Allura suspected I wasn't human even before the maintenance worker was attacked, she doesn't trust me no matter what good I've been! Yes, damnit, I was going to eat her! But not you, never you, and i wouldn't eat the others either. Keith...Keith is like a little brother to me, he doesn't have anyone in this world to look up to. His mother died during childbirth, his father passed away from illness, I said my kind are loners and we are. Seeing him try so hard to fight to survive in this world, I couldn't bring myself to eat him. He's just human, and he's fighting as hard as he can just like my kind would. I don't want to eat others, Lance, it's an instinctive hunger of mine, it's biological. You must know I would never eat you, I promised I would protect you."

Lance swore softly under his breath in his native tongue, pushing up from the wall and made his way over to where the other sat, he motioned for him to stay still as he crouched to look at him. A hand hesitantly reached out to touch one of Shirogane's long pointed ears, tracing the shell before sliding down to stroke his jaw and soon around his third eye, watching it blink like the other two. "You'll never harm me? Then it's time to prove it. I'm trusting you, but if you break my trust i'll throw you out the airlock myself, understand, Kashi?" Lance moved his free hand to stroke against Shirogane's clothed chest, amazed to feel not even bumps where he new the tentacles were hiding underneath the skin and fabric, no matter how hard he pressed. "If i give you this second chance, you're going to stay by my side, understand? You aren't going to attack the others, not even Allura. We'll stick to my story about her having fallen and maybe she'll think it was all a bad hallucination if she does remember seeing you. Either way, you will stay here, by my side since my scent calms you down. You will work hard to prove to me that I should and can trust you. And you will tell me where you are going and when. Understood? We'll try and find a way to control your hunger, i'll admit...it's not fully your fault but you are high enough intelligence level to know right from wrong even when biology is trying to dictate you. Maybe....gods above...maybe we can find you a different prey or two at the outpost. Would, would hunting others..."

A hand that lost its sharpness moved to stroke one of Lance's cheeks, and though the sharpshooter flinched he did not pull away or smack the hand off, merely moving closer so that he could kneel between Shirogane's legs, allowing the man to wrap an arm around him despite the fact that he felt as though he were a small creature standing before a large predator. 

"If i allow you to hunt other living beings, even alien livestock in the outposts, will you leave the others alone? Will you try to get along with Allura? Will you not have me lie for you again?" Tears slipped down Lance's cheeks, hot and thick droplets while he curled in on himself, a choked sob caught in his throat. "I don't- I don't want to lie again."

Slow to pull him closer, afraid that the other would fight back, Shirogane pulled him flushed against his chest, allowing Lance to curl up against him, the sharpshooters arms slow to wrap around his neck in turn whilst he cried from stress and the shock of what he had learnt. His face pressed against Shirogane's neck, and sobs broke free in gentle hiccups, Lance was small compared to Shirogane's larger body, practically dwarfed before the man shifted back to his more human size, holding him close and whispering softly that everything was okay, everything will be okay. That he would not try to harm any other crew mates and try to follow all of Lance's rules. Immediately when Lance began to calm down and his sweet scent returned Shirogane could feel his dull hunger dimminish to the point where he felt nothing. No hunger, no internal growl, just...full. 

Content. 

"I'm hungry..." Lance whispered, looking to Shirogane when his tears finally dred and his breathing resumed to it's even pace. He looked to the other, seeing his human appearing face and smiled softly, a shadow of what he normally gave him. "I'm going to trust you, okay? Now, will you come get a snack with me? Maybe watch something when we get back?"

"Does this mean you won't tell the others?" Shirogane dared to ask, looking at Lance with only two eyes, his third hidden behind its lid and his bangs.

"Yeah, i won't tell anyone, but you're on thin ice, Kashi. Don't make me regret this."

  
  


Stepping into the cafeteria Lance sighed in relief at seeing that the others were out, he looked to the empty tables and saw a remaining few slices of pizza on one of them. Lance didn't care that the pizza was a bit cooled off, the cheese having hardened partially. Snatching up a slice and taking a bite he hummed at the taste, offering a slice to Shirogane whilst he sat down, grabbing a napkin to wipe his lips of any possible sauce. 

"So i was thinking, do you like, actually taste human food? Is it good?"

"Yeah, i can survive off of human food, but it's just...an instinct to hunt prey, you know? Well, I guess you wouldn't but it's kinda like, there's an energy under my skin, a buzz in my head and I just need to hunt." Shirogane chewed carefully to hide his sharp teeth, swallowing a bite before speaking again. "Though I do really like sushi and beef, especially on the rarer side. I still appreciate most earthen cuisine."

Lance watched while he ate how Shirogane ate neatly, though he couldn't help but snort when he saw Shirogane wipe his lips and then eat the napkin as though it were the most natural thing to him. Taking the last slice Lance tore it in half as best he could, sharing it with the other, it felt so ridiculous to him how he could share a meal with the other as if he hadn't seen him almost eat their leader just an hour ago. Still, despite his better judgement, hell his Momma would be whacking him upside the head if she could see him now, he trusted the other. He was silent whilst he cracked open a seltzer water,still watching while Shirogane took one, drinking it quickly and eating the can.

"I...I'm glad you feel comfortable enough to eat how you want in front of me, but when it comes to others, maybe don't eat non edible stuff? It'll give you away." Lance warned, chuckling when Shirogane tilted his head, appearing confused before realizing what he had done, his cheeks heating up in embarrassment. "Naw, no judgement here though, eat how you're comfortable in front of me, just a heads up for the others."

At the sounds of approaching footsteps, Lance looked up to see Coran enter with a soft, tired smile, looking to the two of them. He was no longer wearing his gloves and his suit was a bit wrinkled from leaning over whilst he worked. He headed straight for the small kitchenette to grab an apple, logging in the calores before approaching them, taking a bite and swallowing before speaking. "Well, my boys, Allura is resting now, she's awake and sipping some water. It appears she doesn't remember what happened, though she said to thank you, Lance, for her. She wishes to speak with you later, for now she needs to rest. A mild concussion, nothing serious and the report has been sent to Alfor and the rest of the Garrison. I'll have Hunk and Pidge help me in finding a way to move the wires down under the floor panels to keep them from tripping anyone else as well as having a light installed further in the back."

"Yeah, that'll be for the best." Shirogane spoke, casting Coran a confident smile, his hand resting on Lance's thigh gently underneath the table, giving it a gentle squeeze when he felt Lance shiver, he made sure to do the talking to keep him from having to speak further on the lie, knowing how much it hurt him. "Coran, I was meaning to ask, we'll be passing the collapsing star soon, correct?"

"Yes, in the next 30 hours or so we will be making a swift passing, all the signs are indicating that we should pass before it collapses completely. A brilliant plan, I apologize for doubting you before, my boy." Coran spoke, eating his apple to the core, biting into it and finishing it , all save for the stem. "Can't have waste." He told Lance when he saw the raised brow. 

"You sound just like my Momma, she ate the cores too, and when she didn't she would just use them in the composter, which, Coran, we should have a little garden! We could grow our own produce, I mean we do have the artificial sunlight lamps and it would help purify the air as well."

The ginger haired man hummed ni thought, mulling it over, looking to the empty space in the cafeteria he saw Lance eyeing.

"I'll talk to Alfor about it tonight when I call him, he should be able to send us soil and sprouts Good job my boy."

"You call him regularly, huh?" Lace teased,watching the way Coran's cheeks darkened and his eyes widened. "Hey, don't worry, your secret's safe with me. It's not mine to share, but, does Allura know?"

"I would hope so, after all, I've been helping Alfor raise her since she was born." Coran cleared his throat and looked away, cheeks still as hot and red as before. "Thank you, for not saying anything,it's not something we are really open about, different generation of thinking and all that."

Lance zipped his lips and threw away the key, casting Coran a smile that the man returned.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sharpshooter opened the door to his bedroom and waited until the tactician was in before having it closed and locked. The room was dimly lit by a flickering candle lamp, he didn't dare risk a fire on ship, choosing instead to use plastic lamps that flickered as though they were real flames. He began to strip himself of his boots and zipped up jumpsuit, thankful he wore shorts and a tank top underneath, heading over to the bed to lay down whilst he watched Shirogane follow suit, the other staying in his human form, a fact Lance was grateful for, he wasn't sure if e could handle seeing the alien appendages again, not so soon after all that happened. He watched Shirogane fold his jumpsuit up neatly, the man dressed in a pair of light sweatpants,and white shirt that hugged his chest much like a second skin. Lance moved over to make room in his bed, letting the other join him, still keeping his distance until he was pulled in close by him, his leg sliding between one of Shirogane's and his chest pressed to his. Lance tucked his chin against the curve of the man's neck, and breathed in the soft scent of his aftershave and light musk. He shouldn't be in bed with the other, the man should be locked up, and yet here they were, intertwined and holding each other, breathing slowly, in rhythm. Lance gripped the back of Shirogane's shirt and muffled a dry sob, shivering and shaking, the man holding him as he let out his tired sobs and frustrating screams that were muffled by flesh. Only when Lance had calmed down and cried out his emotions did he look to Shirogane, seeing warm eyes, so familiar and handsome watching him back, filling him with a sense of peace that he chose to trust with all his heart, needing this, needing the other to just be with him through it all. 

"You're beautiful, do you know that, Lance? Out of every human being I met, every that I saw in books and magazines, you are the only one to make my heart skip a beat, your scent makes me want to hold you close and never let you go. To taste your lips and simply share the same air as you. You make me hungry in a way I can't begin to explain. I crave you in a way I never have before. Tell me, what spell do you have me under? Will I ever truly have your heart for myself, or will i watch you fall in love with someone on this ship other than me?" Shirogane whispered, pressing a kiss to Lance's hand that he brought up, unable to stop himself, a tentacle appendage slipping out from under his shirt, curling around Lance's waist. He could feel Lance grow rigid ,slow to melt against him while he calmed down, lulled by the hand on his back stroking him. Another tentacle wrapped around him, keeping Lance close, both of them stroking his lower back, his eyes never leaving oceanic blue hues. 

"You...you really think that? You truly think i'm beautiful?" Lance murmured, shivering at the odd sensation of the tentacles stroking his skin, they were warm and felt to pulse with Shirogane's heart beat, they were not slimy like he would imagine, he wondered just how many Shirogane had but did not think to ask. "You're really worried about that? Kashi, i haven't been able to look at anyone the way i look at you. You make me happy despite everything. You're kind and you make me feel safe. Even right now, I feel safe. You help me keep calm. I don't want anyone on this ship, silly."

Shirogane's laugh was soft, his hands moving to cup Lance's cheeks whilst he stroked his thumbs carefully over cheek bones, leaning in just enough to nuzzle his nose against the sharpshooter’s , a whisper of a kiss pressed to his lips. It was only deepened, pressed firmly by Lance moving himself closer, gripping his shirt once more. He nipped at Shirogane's bottom lip and suckled gently, shivering at against him when a third tentacle wrapped around him, this time around his leg, dangerously close to his groin. It did not go further however, Lance felt the man in return bite his bottom lip, careful of his sharp teeth, forked tongue slipping past Lance's lips and stroked his tongue gently, wrapping around Lance's own in a way he could barely begin to think how it was possible for a human. He nearly giggled at the thought that it was a good thing Shirogane wasn’t human. He kissed Shirogane until he had to pull back for air, gasping gently, his cheeks heating up. 

"I'm sorry...this...this...is this okay?" Lance whispered, looking away until he felt his chin being nudged up by Shrogane's fingers. He looked to him with wide eyes, gasping at a kiss being pressed to his neck. 

"Yeah, this is okay. I like this. You taste sweet." He whispered back,giving Lance's neck a slow lick, tasting the sweet salty taste of his skin, pressing a kiss once more to his lips. "Is this okay with you?"

"Yeah..." Lance giggled softly, feeling almost tipsy, the tentacles pulsed lazily around him, rubbing gently. He sighed when he felt Shirogane lick his neck again, nuzzling his neck and pressing his sharp teeth to the flesh before closing his mouth, pressing closed kisses against his skin before pulling away. "I don't want to go further than this...but i like this... Where are you going?"

"I want to watch something with you, like we did at the base. That's okay?" He asked, moving to reach to the bedside table with a tentacle to take the tablet, handing it to the sharpshooter, watching him flick through videos until he found one on the milky way galaxy. Just like they did at the garrison Shirogane moved to lay on his back, Lance laying on his side, pressed against Shirogane's chest whilst the tablet was set down on it's base, propped on Shirogane's chest for them to watch together. 

The music was soft, gentle harps and flutes whilst a soothing voice spoke, the cosmors shown on the screen, swirling and shimmering. Lance sighed in bliss, feeling the tentacles loosen around him. He didn't try to move away, merely resting against the other, letting Shirogane hold his hand, the man practically purring. Lance found it all to be so naturally perfect, falling into a doze like state whilst the man by him continued his gentle purr of a sound, the voice and music lulling him deeper until he could finally drift off, unsure what the future would bring. Maybe he could make it work. 

Somehow.

"Hey, Lance? I have to use the bathroom." Shirogane nudged him again until he saw blue eyes flutter open, a gentle yawn escaping the sharpshooter. "I know you said don't let me go anywhere without telling you, so do you mind if I use your bathroom?"

"Yeah, i don't care. Just, don't try to do anything funny like slip through a vent." Lance's voice betrayed his suspicion of the man, watching the other flinch, slipping out from under him, his tentacles gone. The door was left open to the bathroom by a crack, Shirogane tapping his foot to make a noise to assure the other he was still there whilst he did what needed to be done, humming whilst he washed his hands. Stepping into the bedroom he watched Lance getting up, stretching as he checked the clock. "It's just about time for dinner, you want to go get something to eat?"

"Yeah."

Lance grabbed his jacket and slipped it on, offering Shirogane his hand and a half hearted smile, feeling the other giving his fingers a gentle squeeze while they headed out of the room, walking down the corridor to the cafeteria where he could hear Hunk and Pidge laughing as well as the voice of Allura reassuring them that she was fine. 

"Please, you guys, i'm fine, a little shaken up, but i'm fine!" Allura laughed her nervous little laugh, seated across from the two cadets who looked at her as though she were to fall over at any moment, the smile she wore wavering at the approaching of the sharpshooter and tactician. "Ah, Lance, Shiro, thank you again for taking me to the medical bay, I owe you both my sincerest gratitude, who knows how long I would have been out if it weren't for Lance finding me."

"No need to thank us, that's what team mates are for." Lance beamed as best he could, heading to the scanner to type in his order, logging in his calories for the day whilst he waited for his soup and sandwich, Shirogane staying by the table Allura sat at. 

Blue eyes met grays, Allura practically shivered, remembering the three gray eyes she had seen in the darkness before she had gone under, her face throbbing at the memory as did her head, she couldn't hold his gaze for long. It had to have been a nightmare, Shirogane wasn't there, he should have been on the opposite side of the ship with his own tasks to do, of course he couldn't have harmed her. No, she was being silly again, and she had promised him she would work on it. What would her father think if he could see her now, looking so distrustful of her crew mate, a strong leader would offer him a smile and gratitude, not suspect him of committing an act of treason. Busying herself with her soup she glanced away, listening to the man walk away much to his relief, her eyes on his back before she was asked by the other two if she was okay. "Oh I'm fine, just a little tired still. Don't you worry, I'm a lot stronger than i look, but thank you again for your kindness, you two really don't need to watch over me. I can feed myself." She teased when she saw Hunk willing to try and feed her the soup. 

When Lance approached with his tray she felt a sinking in her stomach, she knew the other would ask to sit with her, knew he would bring Shirogane over and force some small talk, and even if he didn't, the other two would drag them into a conversation. She wanted to eat her soup as fast as possible to get out, but knew not to raise suspicion as she ate slowly, trying to savour the chicken soup that soon tasted bland and luke warm on her tongue. 

"So Lance, how are you adjusting to your new environment? Hunk and Pidge were telling me about how they are adjusting, what about you? Is everything to your liking?" Allura asked in between bites, offering a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Yeah, it's a great opportunity, I'm so glad to have been able to take it and to be here. The tasks are challenging, not too bad once you get used to them." The sharpshooter grinned, dipping his sandwich into his soup whilst he looked to looked to her. She was envious that he could feel so at ease sitting next to Shirogae. "Not to mention getting to see the stars and being able to work with all of you, it's been great! I'm sorry to see that you got banged up, but i'm so glad it wasn't anything serious!"

"Yes it's a good thing Lance found you." Shirogane spoke slowly, looking to his meal of chicken and dumplings,eating with careful bites to hide his teeth, offering Allura a closed lipped smile when she looked at him with wide eyes and fear that was quickly doused for the sake of her teammates.

"Yes, well, that's alright, things happen, what about you Shiro? You taking a liking to the ship?"

"Yes, it's quite an opportunity like Lance said. I'm glad to be here with him." He made his words direct, his face neutral, eyes boring into Allura, she was quick to nod, finishing her soup with quickened bites. 

"Well, that's- that's great to hear! Well, I really ought to get back to the bay, Coran wants to run one last health scan and I would really like to take another pain killer. If you'll excuse me, we must talk again soon!" Standing up on shaking legs she picked up her tray to dispose of her trash, giving a curt wave of her hand on her way out, fast paced and not looking back, leaving Lance to give her a called out farewell whilst his brows furrowed. 

"She must be embarrassed for tripping and getting banged up, shit happens." Pidge spoke up when the other was gone from the cafeteria, stuffing her mouth with chicken and rice, giving her chest a thump when she choked a little before washing it down with a large swig of juice. "Seriously, shit happens, but when you have a superiority complex like Allura i guess even small blunders is enough to fuck up her day."

"Not to mention those bruises, damn those look painful. Going to be real shiners for a week or so." Hunk murmured in agreement, looking at Lance and Shirogane with a shy smile, just knowing that the two of them were holding hands under the table, it didn't take a genius to see how attached they were becoming. Not that Hunk had a problem with it, this was the happiest he had seen Lance in a long time, if Shirogane made him happy then he would support him. "So, you two have plans tomorrow? Coran says we have a day off from tasks because of the star passing afterwards. I was thinking of going to the pool."

Lance looked to the simoan male with a wide grin, finishing up his soup with a quick bite. “Pool? Oh hell yeah, a day of swimming will be great, damn right i'll be there, and Kashi too." He added, looking to the man with a stern look that told him he had to be there.

"Yeah, sounds great." Shirogane hummed, taking a few bites of his chicken and dumpling before bringing his dirtied plate and tray to be sanitized, returning straight to Lance's side and sat obediently, if Hunk and Pidge noticed they didn't seem to mind. Though they did look to Lance with raised brows that only lowered when the other grinned and mouthed to them not to worry about it.

So long as Shirogane was by his side and in his sights everything would be fine. 

They couldn't afford a mistake.

  
  


Outside of the medical bay Allura shook, she felt ready to throw up her dinner, her eyes clenched tightly, she told herself to calm down; that it had been a hallucination, yet even now, standing out of Shirogane's sight and reach, she felt as though his hands were gripping her face and his breath hot on her neck. No, she had to calm down. She just had to, not only for herself, but for her team's well being.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The clock built into the wall read that it was ten in the morning on Earth; laying in the still pitch black room the sharpshooter could swear it was whatever time the galaxy decided to feel like. The only thing still keeping them on a set schedule was Earthen time, though he supposed it would have to change eventually once they get to the trading post or another planet. He kept his eyes closed whilst he laid in bed, didn't see a point in opening them just yet anyways. The day before still felt like a fever dream, he wondered if any of it had even happened, only being brought back from his musings by feeling an arm draped over his side, a sharp nailed thumb rubbing softly at his hip bone. The heat from the man's hand brought a shiver down his spine, he could feel a forked tongue lick a broad strip up his neck before breath fanned out over the skin. He felt his mouth go dry, a whine slipping past that brought the man behind him to a still, words spoken raspy in his ear.

"Good morning, Lance." 

"Morning to you too." Lance yawned, stretching out a bit, he rolled over onto his side to face the other, clapping his hands to turn the lights on low; Shirogane's eyes practically glowed in the dim lighting, his teeth flashing while he yawned, ending with a clicking of them striking each other. "I told Hunk we are going to meet him at the pool since we got the day off. I hope you know I still expect you to be there. If you sneak off i will know, and I will lock you up."

Though the words held volumes of truth there was also a hint of teasing whilst Lance stroked his fingers through Shirogane's hair, observing the other for his reaction, pleased to see him nod his head solemnly, pressing closer to be stroked. Shirogane's skin retained it's more human coloring, he found it was coolish to the touch, only heating up after taking in the heat Lance's own body radiated until the other began to create his own at Lance's prodding of if he was okay.

"To be honest, I love swimming, it's been a while since last time I could just relax either in the pool or ocean, yeah i swam laps at the base, but those were timed and always with weights on my wrists and ankles. This is different. It's going to be great!” The sharpshooter rolled out of bed much to his bed mates whining, hopping up while he stretched his arms up and slowly raised his leg up to the point that he was perfectly split, vertically, moving to rest his foot by his head whilst he held his ankle. He breathed deeply, slowly bringing it back down in order to do the same with the other leg, humming at the deep stretch, aware that Shirogane was watching him intently. 

"You're extremely flexible, I don't think I've ever seen someone do that with such ease." Shirogane murmured, slipping out of bed to step closer, practically circling Lance whilst he continued his stretch, his eyes taking in the form of the sharpshooter, taking in every inch of the expanse of skin visible, of his soft curves and the way his shorts sat dangerously low on his hips. He wanted to move closer to taste the skin only stopped by Lance putting down his leg and offering a blushing smile, pushing past him to head to the built in closet to grab swim trunks. 

"I'm just going to get dressed, wait here for me okay?" He kept the bathroom door halfway open while he did his morning routine of body lotion and dry shampoo, cleaning himself up despite knowing that he would be in the pool soon. He dressed himself in dark blue swim trunks that rested on his hips, a towel slung over his shoulder. He decided against bringing a shirt, merely walking out to grab his flip flops he packed for when he was too lazy to wear boots, pleased to see Shirogane remained in place. "Come on, lets go get your trunks, you packed some, right?"

"Y-yeah, I packed some." The man murmured, eyeing Lance's exposed chest, his mouth watering in a way he had never experienced before, unlike hunger he didn't feel the urge to tear into the expanse of skin, didn't crave the blood and meat that was hidden underneath such warm, smooth skin. No, he wanted to taste him in a way that only a lover could offer. To kiss the perfect navel and along his ribs, to nip the pretty pink nipples and up the collar bones. He knew he was staring, he couldn't help it, following Lance out of his room much like a puppy following it's master. He held Lance's hand gently in his when they began the trek to his own quarters, aware of how quiet the halls were. He spied Keith leaving his own room with red trunks on, a towel over one arm and a book in hand, the other cadet offered him a simple smile and nod, brushing shoulders with Lance, heading to where the pool was on the other side of the ship. 

When Shirogane had on his black swim trunks and shirt he looked to the sharpshooter who tried his best not to stare at how the shirt clung to him like a second skin, or how the trunks were just a size too small in the front. If the man seemed to mind he didn't show it as he offered Lance a smirk and brushed past him, this time taking the lead in walking out from his darkened room, taking the path to the pool while Lance hurried to catch up, brushing his arm against his ever so often whilst they walked. 

The smell of chlorine was thick in the warm air when the doors to the pool area opened with a gentle hiss of air, already Lance could see Hunk and Pidge in the middle of the pool, floating on rubber tubes and chatting quietly, Keith having taken residence on a long backed beach chair. The fellow tactician was reading, his towel folded neatly by his feet, his hair in a small loose ponytail. There was no doubt that it was Pidge who set up a recording to play over the speakers; the sound of waves crashing lazily over a shore line was heard followed by soft cries of gulls, a flute could be heard playing almost too soft to be heard over the waves. It was perfect in Lance’s opinion, made his heart swell whilst he thought of the beach he grew up on.

The smaller cadet looked over, raising her hand lazily in greeting when she heard them enter, picking up her water flask to steal a sip before capping it and letting it rest on her lap. "Bout time you got here, thought you were going to skip out."

"Naw, just wanted to sleep in a little bit." The sharpshooter stuck his tongue out, picking the closest beach chair to drop his towel on, giving his flip flops a light kick off; the water temperature on the wall read eighty degrees and Lance was itching to get in, forgetting about Shirogane for the moment while he headed down the built in steps, sighing when the warm water licked at his knees and soon submerged him when he dove the rest of the way. His eyes were closed tight, his body felt free, he swam up to the surface, pushing his hair out of his face. He swam over to where Hunk was in his tube, taking hold to merely anchor himself by him, listening to what he and Pidge were resuming discussing. Lance couldn't follow all of it, he did recognize some of the terms, they must have been discussing the collapsing star. He laid his chin on his folded arms and closed his eyes, content to merely listen and float, feeling fingers stroke through his hair. 

With the three of them in the pool Shirogane looked to where Keith sat, noticing the other stretched out contently much like a larger feline, sipping from a glass that had juice of some kind, purplish black eyes meeting his. At the beckoning of his fingers Shirogane joined him in a chair next to his own, looking to the book that Keith read from; from the cover of it it was a western tale. They sat in silence save for the sounds of the waves and the soft chatter that fell into white noise, neither needing to speak to be able to enjoy the time they spent together. Shirogane merely reclined back in his chair and closed his eyes, sighing barely audibly, listening to the turning of the pages when Keith would finish a page, sometimes he would hear the near silent puff of air as though Keith were chuckling at what he read. When he heard the book being put down he looked to him curiously. 

Keith had bent the page on the top tip to keep his place, his eyes on the other cadets that floated in the pool, a game of marco polo started with Lance trying to find the other two who were finally off their tubes. A soft smile was on his lips whilst he watched them play, his cheeks coloring when he realized he was caught watching by the man next to him who merely offered a closed lipped smile. 

"You know, I'm sure they would love to have you play with them, Keith." 

"Oh shut up, we aren't children, and i don't want to play with them. I was just enjoying the music." Keith huffed, folding his knees up to his chest, an arm wrapped around them loosely whilst he leant in to rest his chin on his knees. "Besides, I don't really actually know them, i guess you can say i know Lance but that's just because we work together. The other two don't even work in the same field as us."

"They're our fellow crewmates, I'm sure they would like to get to know you if you give them a chance, and who knows, maybe they do have things in common with us despite the fact they work the more technical parts of our job." Shirogane offered, his voice low whilst he spoke, moving to face the other, he laid a hand softly on Keith's ankle, giving it a squeeze. "It's okay to be nervous."

"I'm not nervous-"

"It's okay to be hesitant or unsure. You know, no one here will force you to do anything you don't want to do. Move at your own pace and who knows, maybe you'll find that the crew could be like a family." He gave Keith's ankle another careful squeeze, getting up and making his way to the pool's edge after he stepped out of his flip flops and took off his shirt, offering Keith a smile before heading to the deep end to dive in. He stayed under the water for several long moments, swimming his way up to the surface and grinning when Lance and the others called over to him to join. He could see Keith still on his chair, fiddling with his fingers and tapping his toes. 

The splash that washed over Shirogane came when he found Keith had finally left his book on the chair and had chosen to dive in, nearly knocking Lance over on his tube and prompted a splashing fight that had Pidge screaming for revenge in knocking her off her tube 

When the water settled and the makeshift water fight was done the five of them found themselves floating on the tubes, the ocean sounds on loop; the jets on the side of the pools edges made the water rise and fall lightly in waves. If Shirogane saw the smile on Keith's face he didn't comment on it, simply happy to see the other out of his shell whilst he laid and listened to Pidge and Hunk debate on the most effective way to use ion crystals in everyday situations.

"I'm getting out, I need to shower and get the chlorine out of my hair before it damages it." Lance spoke up when he headed to the stairs, grabbing the tube with him to head to the large trunk where he had found it. He didn't tell Shirogane to follow him, though he felt a sense of relief wash over him when he heard the man claim that he was in need of something to eat and would see the others later. Of course Hunk and Pidge shot Lance and him looks that screamed that they would be asking questions later, but for the moment Lance merely grabbed his towel on his chair, wrapped it around himself and headed for the showers with Shirogane following right behind him. 

"I'm glad to see I don't need to tell you to follow me." He murmured on his way to the shower room, passing Coran whom he offered a bright smile to, thankful the man didn't hear him.

"I told you i would do whatever you ask to ensure you feel safe, if this is what you want, then so be it." Shirogane murmured, stepping into the room and heading for the last shower stall, the one right next to Lances. 

"Yeah i know, i mean...it's just good to see you actually going through with it, and that has nothing to do with who you are or what you are. Humans lie to you know, i'm just happy to know it's something you are keeping up on." Lance sighed, shaking his head, he stepped into his shower stall and stripped out of his wet trunk. He would have to just suck it up and use the shampoo and soap that the Garrison stocked, too lazy to head all the way to his room to grab his own. It didn't smell that bad either, just simple generic soap and shampoo, nothing fancy. 

When the two of them were cleaned and wrapped up in towels Lance's cheeks were bright red at realizing they would have to walk the way back to their rooms in nothing but the towels they grabbed from the linen closet. It was nearly a race Lance felt as he hurried to head back to his room without being seen, ushering Shirogane to go to his own room to get his clothing.

"I trust you, just bring a few things to my room. You got five minutes before I hunt you down!" He called out to him, heading into his own room to get dressed.

To his surprise, Shirogane was back in exactly three minutes with a few pairs of clothes under his arm and a grin on his face.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was early morning by earthen time, when the cadets were roused from their slumber, Allura and Coran had them gathered in the cafeteria, each one given a mug of coffee along with their tasks for the day. It had been announced by the ginger haired man that they would be crossing paths with the ever fading star, that their reports as of that moment showed that the core was becoming vastly unstable and should all their tasks be done in time as well as the ship taken care of, they should be able to skirt on by without taking much if any damage at all.

"Hunk and Pidge, you two will be working together to ensure that the ion field is operating at full capacity, any radiation, any particle of dust, even the size of a pebble asteroid will be burnt off and cleared away. Lance and Keith, you two will be ensuring that the power and engine are fully fueled and that no wires need to be adjusted." Allura spoke, her face covered by the helmet she wore though they could still see the swelling in her eye through the tinted glass. She turned to Shirogane,motioning with a hand. "Shiro, I will be having you up at the helm with Coran and I. After looking at everything we have to go by, I can say that we should be in the clear so long as we work together. We will be encroaching on the star's radius within the coming hour. Drink up, everyone, and let's head to your stations in ten."

She did not expect to see her fellow cadets give her a salute, her cheeks were rosey and she couldn't help but smile, hiding her wince when her bruised cheeks throbbed. She looked to each of them with pride, stopping at the sight of Shirogane, forcing herself to offer him the same gratitude and polite nod of her head; She sipped the espresso infused brew, wincing at how bitter it was with no sugar just a hint of lemon from the nutrient and vitamin drops that were dropped into each of theirs. She finished the brew with a barely held back gag and placed it onto the wrack to be washed later, offering the others a smile once again before heading out, her shoulders drooping when she was out of sight. She slipped a hand into her right pocket of her jumpsuit, she stroked the turquoise beads of the necklace she kept tucked away, fingering each bead and stroking the tips of her fingers down the silver chain whilst praying to any deity that might be listening for guidance and success, to keep her crew safe. 

The helm was silent save for the just barely audible hissing of the vents and the steam that came from the humidifier, the holo screen was off, showing just the endless expanse of space outside, stars shimmering and galaxies swirling, her fingers tapped along the metal bar in front of the large expanse of window, viewing the heavens by herself for just a bit; she knew all that was keeping her safe from the vacuum of space was the thick glass in front of her. Though she wasn't as familiar with the ship like Hunk and Pidge, she knew that the glass had numerous layers and various treatments sprayed and weaved over it, not even a large asteroid hitting it would cause a crack. No, they would need to be smashed repeatedly in the same spot before it would even leave a dent. She knew this, and yet still felt the coils of nervousness wash over her at the thought of the star they would be passing. The radiation would be kept out by the Ion shields, and the heat would be displaced by the vacuum of space, not to mention the pace they were going to be well out of it's way, perhaps she was still nervous due to the fact that it was Shirogane who suggested it.

"Such a cruel thing to hold over him. He hasn't done anything wrong and already I'm treating him like the devil." Allura whispered to herself, leaning heavily against the captain's chair she approached, sitting down with her head in her hands, fingers carding through the locks of her hair that were not held back in her tight bun and helmet. She needed to keep a grip over herself, she was a leader after all, she had to be stronger than this!

At the sound of the doors opening Allura shook her head and stood to face both Coran and Shirogane, a mask firmly in place. "Coran, Shiro, great, you're here, looks like the others are at their assigned places." She looked to the holoscreen that was pulled up, lights pinging on the map to show where each crew mate was. Her fingers slid over the holo pad, checking various tasks and prodding alerts to each crew mate and waiting, marking down their response verbally when she was notified back. 

"Ah, Hunk and Miss Pidge are all set, ion shields up and holding strong, we'll be keeping them raised with lower perimeter to stay closer to the ship to avoid wasting energy. We are more worried about radiation and space dust at the moment than actual debris." Coran chimed in when he moved to take his spot to the left of Allura's seat, pulling up his own tablet and pad. "Readings are showing we'll be passing the star in forty minutes, and the radiation field is becoming pressurized. It's dying a bit faster now."

Allura nodded, looking over to the screen of information that Coran sent her, eyes glancing to Shirogane when the man approached and took a spot to her right, his stern gray eyes looking over both map and information she possessed; he pulled up his own tablet and spoke. 

"Keith and Lance have split up, Keith is in the engine room and Lance is in the electric bay. Both have a channel up to communicate with each other." Shirogane remarked, flicking his fingers over what he read, skimming the readings. "Extra power is being switched to thrusters, they will be fed from the added fuel lines once we are in sight range of the star, Lance is going to be turning off all unnecessary breakers for the rooms not in use to take care of any possible energy spike as well as feeding extra energy to lights and oxygens in rooms in use." A shadow of a smile came to Shirogane's lips whilst he spoke of the two of them, his head nodding when he saw Allura's attention on him. "Everything is going according to plan, Allura, we just need to sit tight and keep pace. We may feel a jerk when we approach, that should only be the thrusters shoving us out of the dying star's orbit."

"Understood. Opening up a channel now." Her eyes remained dead set on looking straight ahead, the soft beep from her helmet heard whilst she listened to hear each cadet speak up to show they had been able to answer the call. "We have thirty five minutes everyone until we make connection. Sit tight and keep your eyes and ears sharp. Once we are past this we will be on our way to the trading post within the next twenty four hours, so please, let's give this our all and we'll be fine."

"Yes ma'am!"

Again the voices of her crew mate had her shivering in delight, she saw Coran give her his own approving smile and even accepted the gentle clap to her shoulder from Shirogane, her eyes looking to the holopads once more. All she had to do was guide them and hold strong. That was all she had to do.

Time moved by slowly, it felt that way for each crewmate whilst they watched the timer count down from the screen their helmets displayed.The pulsing light from the dying star was visible in the distance, it burned such a ghostly white with flickers of reds and blues, beautiful in it's essence, the heat it emitted could be felt washing through the ship though the humming of the reactor was heard while it fought to keep the heat from cooking them alive. The voice of Allura could be heard through their communicators in their ears, reassuring them that they would be fine. The ship shuttered and shook, the lights dimming and for a moment the heat flared before it was brought back down. All throughout the ship the each of them could hear the roar of the thrusters and for a moment all was still until a large jerk brought them near toppling over for those who weren't strapped in their chairs, namely Lance and Keith whom fell on their fronts and faces when the ship suddenly was shot forward, reminding Lance much like a bullet being fired. 

"Is...is everyone okay?" Allura groaned softly through the link, her breathing heard as though she were panting from freight.

"Hunk and I are fine." The voice of Pidge chimed in, a vomiting gurgle heard muffled from her microphone. "Well, mostly fine, seems the pressure and shaking messed up Hunks stomach- dude fucking nasty, try to aim for the bucket and not my boots!"

“Language!”

"Directing fuel back to normal levels." Keith grunted, no doubt getting off the floor once the ship showed no sign of jerking and tossing them about again.

"Sending power back to other rooms again. Besides a little shaky I'm fine!" Lance chimed in, getting off the ground with a soft laugh. "Did we make it past? What happened?"

"Ah, well you see, that jerking and shaking was the ship actually skimming past the star's orbit, it seemed it was a lot closer to dying than we actually thought! Fascinating really, feel free to watch the outside footage of it later at your convenience, we'll be having it saved as well as sending it to the Garrison." Coran sounded pleased with himself, no doubt smiling and clasping his hands. "The kick back we all felt before being surged forward was our tail end being pushed by the explosion, which gave us quite a scare, but with the extra concentration of the ion shields we were able to avoid taking damage to the ship's base. Though we will need to get a little more fuel at the trading post as well as more ion crystals. Good work everyone, please, collect yourselves and take the rest of the day to decompress. You all did quite well and i'm so very proud of you!"

The line closing was all they heard after Coran's kind words, no doubt they were already on edge of going to the trading post, one of the largest on their side of the galaxy. It was a place for them to refuel, restock and make connections with various races and those wishing to learn more about Earth.

As well as a hunting ground for Shirogane to feed...

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The completion of normal tasks were done just as they always were the day after the whole ordeal with the dying star, Lance found himself with Shirogane as his partner for doing his tasks that morning, though he didn't bother asking, he knew the other had set it up so that he was always with him. No one questioned it, not even Keith who took his tasks and offered them a small wave. Something had changed within the other, Lance noticed, Keith was slowly coming out of his shell, he didn't talk more than usual or show necessarily much more attention in conversations than normal, but he was around more. Often seeking them out at meal times since the pool day, content to sit at their table while he read or worked on his wood carvings; in Lance's own opinion they were amazing, the man was working on ones in the form of lions. Something he mentioned he remembered seeing in an old comic back when he was a kid. Though he didn't talk much Lance still found his company nice, even if it was sometimes just him appearing where they were and sitting nearby, and at times Lance could get him to talk even if it took some poking and prodding, being snapped at meant that the other would soon settle down once more and sometimes would chime in on whatever it was that was being discussed. 

When the Beta Ka Galaxy intergalactic trading post was within their scanners reach Allura had made sure to have each cadet present in the helm, her arms clasped behind her back while she nodded to each of them, Coran holding in his gloved hands several small satchels; one was given to each cadet and inside were found small white crystals that had cloudy pinks specks inside, no bigger than the tip of their fingers. They were informed that each crystal was known as a Ka shard, one shard was the equivalent of a hundred earthen dollars and would be accepted at any and all vendors and traders at the tradingpost. It would be their allowance whilst at the station, in each bag was held four crystal shards as well as a pin that would need to be displayed on their person at all time to signal they were from the Garrison and not shifters trying to impersonate. 

"Once we are refueled and have the shipments switched out, and the other tasks done, you will be able to explore the trading post at your leisure, we will be docked for two days so do be aware of how much you are spending and know that any purchases you bring back will have to be able to be contained in your rooms. So do try not to buy too much." Coran gave a soft laugh, placing the crystal shards back into his own satchel after having done the explanation, helping each cadet with getting the pin on straight. "These are made from ionic crystals infused with titanium, a substance found only on earth, they are impossible to duplicate here without the proper ores, so do not lose them and know that they will be scanned alongside you as well when returning to the ship. We'll be hoping that you all will be able to watch out for each other and try your best not to wander off or get lost. If you see something, as the saying goes, say something. This is a neutral trading post so there will not be any need to fight, please keep your weapons with the safety on and be ready to have some fun!"

"You are also a representative of the Garrison and Earth when you step off this ship, remember to be polite, courteous and aware of your surroundings. We can not afford to have any issues or miscommunications going on." Allura was quick to inform, looking them over to watch their nods, a smile on her lips that revealed truly how excited she was to head out. "We will be docking in exactly half an hour, make sure you are strapped in to your assigned spots and wait until Coran and I call you to head back here, we will do a quick scan before we leave, standard procedures. You are dismissed!"

"I am so buying some new tech, if i have to spend this journey just fiddling with earth stuff i'm going to die." Pidge huffed under her breath when she passed by Lance and Hunk, earning a snort from them that had her flipping them off on her way to her assigned spot in the ship, the others already following out besides Allura and Coran who sat in their seats, strapping themselves in. 

"I'm trusting you to be on your best behaviour." Lance whispered to Shirogane in passing, the man giving him a solemn nod before he turned on his heel and headed to the empty seat beside Allura, wishing he could follow Lance to his station. He felt the hunger in him wash over, it had been several days since he last hunted and was able to eat live prey, without Lance's scent to soothe him he felt an aching in the pit of his stomach, the scent of the two humans wafted in the air, he was able to keep himself grounded by closing his eyes and focusing on the feeling of his jumpsuit wrapped around him, his excessive saliva swallowed quickly before it could leak out. He could hear Allura and Coran talking, when they asked if he was alright he merely told them he was fine, that he was meditating, which he knew technically wasn't a lie, but where they thought he was meditating to keep his nerves in check, it was truthfully that he was doing it to keep from opening his mouth to rip into their tender flesh.

Oh how he was missing his Sharpshooter.

Soon, soon he told himself, counting the seconds in his head until he finally felt the pull of gravity and the ship being pulled by a tractor beam that helped guide it into the docking bay, the lurch nearly toppling him over, it would have too if it weren't for the belts strapping him into his seat. He listened the steam of the rockets dying down as well as the metal locks clunking when the wrapped themselves around the sip to keep it secured, the large screen of the helm no longer showed the beauty of space but rather the darkness of the locking bay until finally it showered dim lighting of the inside of the trading post inner bay. Only when all noises ceased and the ship was completely still did he undo the straps and watched Allura pull up a hailing screen, her helmet on and the visor up to show her face to the green skinned man who appeared over the holopad.

"My name is Captain Allura, I am the ship's captain, The Castle, rank Paladin of the Stars, number 1993. Permission to come aboard and begin unloading the cargo requested."

The man seemed to need her words translated, for Shirogane soon heard what Allura said being spoken in an alien dialect, a robotic voice was heard answering from a device around the creatures neck. 

"Ah, pleasure to meet you, Allura, I be Officer Reznar, permission granted, please come out at leisure of yours. We will discuss working papers when you get off."

The holopad went blank after Allura confirmed that he had heard him, her eyes bright whilst she turned to Coran with a smile, her giddiness soon concealed once more as though she hadn't been just moments away from practically squealing at a job well done. She adjusted the helmet's visor, turning to Shirogane with a nod, opening up the channel for all connected cadets,she informed them that they had docked and to report to the helm. She waited for each of her cadets to report before instructing that Shirogane, Keith, and Lance would be doing most of the heavy lifting whilst Hunk and Pidge would be coming with her to get the paperwork in order as well as establishing a proper trade report. “Coran, I will leave you in charge of ensuring that all of the cargo is delivered to the proper gateways."

"Yes, Allura, it will be my pleasure." Coran looked to the three mentioned, offering a bright smile. "Follow me you three, we will be heading into the storage room, don't worry we only have about fifty crates, if we get a move on it'll be done in a jiffy!"

"Only fifty he says." Keith murmured under his breath, earning a snort from Lance while they followed the ginger haired man to the storage room, the crates stacked neatly against the walls and taking up most of the space in the room. Coran held a tablet in one hand and began to direct them on which crates to pick up first, checking them off as they went.

Looks were deceiving was what they found, some of the larger crates were fairly light whilst some of the smaller ones were in need of two to lift, the sheer weight causing the crates themselves to creak, and grunts heard from the cadets while they moved them out of the ship and onto floating pallets which Coran then pushed over to the various onlookers to take to their final destination, a rinse and repeat process that took the better part of three hours. 

Each time they brought out the crates Lance was able to see more of the unloading bay, there were several ships lined up alongside their own, various aliens of races he had never seen before bringing out and taking in crates and barrels to their ships, none looked to them, nor paid them much mind, talking to themselves in languages that Lance felt tongue tied even thinking of trying to mimic. With the last crate being set down on the floating pallet Lance had to stop to catch his breath, his arms and back ached something fierce. He could feel the sweat dripping down his back and his bangs sticking to his forehead, eyes narrowed in clear envy at watching Pidge and Hunk walk beside Allura, the three of them appearing to be relaxed and talking amongst themselves. Pidge could only smirk at seeing the three cargo lifters lean against the ship, sweat dripping down Keith's face and Shirogane having to fan himself, though he appeared in much better shape than Lance. 

"Well, you'll all be happy to know that the shipment payment has been collected, and we'll be collecting our order tomorrow as well as sending the parcels to earth that have been ordered." Allura explained, offering a sympathetic smile to the three of them. "Go freshen up and explore, there's a lot to see and discover, please try to reconvene back here before it gets too late, i would prefer to lock up the ship with all of you on board."

"Augh, i need to wash up." Lance mumbled, heading back into the ship, his arms stinging when he walked; Shirogane followed after him, neither saying a word whilst they walked to Lance's room where he stripped off his jumpsuit and headed to the bathroom to wash up, deciding against taking a shower. He dressed himself in a pair of fresh dark jeans and light blue t-shirt, his favorite green hooded jacket tugged on and his hair combed into pace. He observed from the doorway Shirogane finishing dressing himself, dressed in black slacks and a tight gray shirt with a vest zipped up. His hair was kept messy, his bangs covering his third eye. He smelt of light musk and applied deodorant that he had taken from Lance's night stand, a sheepish smile on his lips when Lance commented on it. 

"So...How exactly do you want to do this?" The sharpshooter asked on the way out of the ship, his voice low enough so that only the other could hear, he kept an eye on the other crews they passed, workers from all over the galaxy in all shapes and colors, some resembling humans in a way whilst others looked to be a mishmash of animals and elements. He looked to Shirogane when they passed through the main doors from the cargo bay to the main showroom, his eyes widening when he was able to get a good look of the main area of the Beta Ka trading. 

The main area was enormous, the space packed with various stores built into the walls and stalls that lined it in makeshift paths to direct foot traffic. The scent of delicacies from all over the galaxy were wafted by the vendors waving fans and the air flow that was created by the artificial breeze. Colorful banners lined the walls as well as the stalls, some he recognized as flags from various planets and colonies, even spying the one for earth. A simple blue flag with a white stripe horizontally cutting through the middle with an emblem of the earthen planet sketched, three stars on the left and two on the right. He had to memorize numerous flags back at the Garrison, he could recognize the earthen one, and several from nearby galaxies and even some that were simply just more well known due to their colony sizes and their importance in the importing of goods and services. 

Several pedestrians looked over at the two of them whilst they began to head down the main lane of foot traffic, there were others who appeared human enough, some with various skin hues and long vegetation that served as hair and appendages that swayed whilst they walked, some even with animal appendages and body that resembled human shaped, covered in fur with claws and muzzles. Then there were those that they couldn't recognize from their past classes, spying gelatinous like creatures with bodies practically see through save for various colored goop inside that shifted and pulsed when they moved, smaller alien creatures that stood roughly two feet with insect type bodies and some with bird like beaks and numerou eyes. They all shared one thing in common, and that was the fact that each and every single one of them came with the express purpose to shop to their heart's content, some stalls absolutely swarming with workers of different races trying their best to keep up with orders whilst some held a only a handful of patrons seeking the goods they offered. 

The smell of something spicy caught Lance's attention, the smell practically made his mouth water whilst he took hold of Shirogane's hand to not be lost in the foot traffic, following it to to a stall nearest the western exit from the looks of it; it was a small stall with a simple black banner and a flag in the back that looked tattered with bits of food stuck to it. An alien with light red fur and body of a large feline was the only one visible in the stall; from the curved hips and pudge on the chest they resembled the female gender, smiling to reveal sharpened eye teeth, four green hued eyes looking to them. A napron was tied snuggly around their waist, otherwise was void of clothing save for the gloves on their paws. The feline motioned them closer, the glass case protecting food from wandering fingers of passerbyers.

"Ah, Earthlings yess?" The alien cooed, voice soft with just the slightest bit of a hiss. "Come, come try my waresss. Only the bessst from my home land." 

The sharpshooter wasn't even sure what it was that he looked at, though from the looks of it it might have been safe to guess that they were smoked cuts of meat on skewers as well as meat of some kind in bowls of what might have passed as rice for the flines home planet. On top of the case was a large jug of lime green liquid with slices of what he could imagine to be fruit floating. It reminded him of the barbecues back on earth, and he couldn't wait to try it. 

"It smells amazing, what is it?" Lance asked, looking at the picture that the feline pulled up on a holo pad to reveal a bovine-like creature with four horns and three eyes, possessing stripes instead of spots. 

"Thisss isss Chuma. My home land isss known for raisssing them. Very good, very tender if ssslow cooked over even flame. You will try sssome?" They asked, already taking out a small glass plate, slicing into a piece of the meat to place upon it, offering small tooth picks that Lance eagerly took, handing one to Shirogane before he popped it into his own mouth, eyes widening in barely contained delight. "Very ssspicy, very good, yesss?"

"Are you kidding, this is the best! It reminds me of smoked pork and chilli rub!" Lance licked his lips, tossing the little toothpick into the basket that was held out for him. He looked to see the other nod, Shirogane chuckling at Lance's smile. "How much for a meal to go? Two actually, this stuff is good!"

"Ah, you kind, you kind." The feline purred whilst taking small plastic containers that resembled bowls with a divider down the middle, scooping up hearty portions of meat on one side of each container and the spiced rice on the other. "For you, I say...quarter ion crystal. I'll even throw in a bottle of Olea, very soothing, sweet and tart." They motioned to the cooler of liquid whilst gathering a bottle to fill to the top, capping it before it could spill. Taking the ion crystal from the sharpshooter the feline used a scale to weigh it before breaking off a small piece, handing the rest back to him. "Pleasssure to ssserve. Enjoy!"

To say Lance was happy would have been an understatement, his smile was bright whilst he held onto Shirogane's hand, leading him away from the stall with the burlap bag in his spare hand, following wherever the makeshift street took him. He stopped at several little booths that offered sweets, some baked that resembled earthen ones, some with their own designs and culinary delights, all fluffy and delicious from what Lance tried. When he had spent a full crystal and decided to head out of the food district. Shirogane was simply happy to follow Lance wherever the other led him, he stopped to gather his own food once when he found a butcher, a fact Lance chose not to think about whilst Shirogane bought several large portions of raw meat, the man carrying it in his hand furthest from Lance's. They spoke not of it while Shirogane nibbled on a small piece he tore off from a chunk, his lips licked clean of blood as well as his hand. 

"So...how do we want to do this? Thihunt thing?" Lance asked softly while they looked through spools of cloth in a larger stall, picking up several that could be used to make cute shirts, he placed them in a pile for the alien clerk to gather up and ring out for when they were done. 

"Tonight. Late tonight, I'll go out-"

"Oh no you aren't, i'm going with you. I don't care if it's something i won't like to see, i'm going with you to make sure the others stay safe. you promised me." Lance retorted, adding a tie dye like fabric to the pile before he motioned to the clerk he was done and ready to cash out.

Shirogane's shoulders slumped whilst he sighed, his head shaking, he was powerless to say no when Lance was narrowing his eyes and frowning at him, his scent turning sour with frustration. 

"Very well, i'll allow you to come with me." He mumbled, taking up his own pile of fabric to the clerk to buy, adding the bag to the small pile he accumulated. They had already bought several translated paper back books as well as Lance having bought a small harp type instrument and good luck charm from a species known as the galran, it was beautifully crafted from black polished stone that shown almost like a diamond with smooth textures and intricate design, and inside held a crimson pearl. 

With their last purchase in hand, and two crystals remaining between the two of them, they made their way back to the ship where Pidge and Hunk were seen carrying a small crate inside, the two of them grinning like cheshire cats when asked what they had found. 

“Stop, gotta scan you first.” Coran informed them before they could get too far inside, running the scanner over each of their pins and across their faces. “Carry on.”

"You'll never believe it, this guy- I think it was a guy? Looked kinda like an owl..." Pidge started, shaking her head to keep on track. "This owl was just practically giving away old tech- well old to their species, but like, way more advanced than earth, and i'm going to go through it and see what i can use it for! Only paid a whole crystal for it!"

"Can we talk after we get it in your room, it's heavy." Hunk whined, ignoring Pidge's scoff for him not to be a baby about it. "What about you two, find any good things? I bought some raw ingredients and a cookbook."

Lance helped in carrying the heavy crate alongside the two of them, humming in confirmation. "You bet i did, got some food for a late lunch, some fabric i'm going making into a few shirts and some books that were translated. Also got a good luck charm, yeah i know it's just mumbo jumbo stuff, but come on, how many people can say they have an alien good luck charm that didn't come from an area 51 joke shop?"

"You got a point there. Okay, put her down." Pidge called once they made it to her room, the room practically a tripping hazard with her clothes strewn about alongside books and bits of technology from her earlier shopping trip. "Hunk, Lance, I love you, and Shiro, I respect you, but please go away, momma needs to get acquainted with her new babies. Hunk, i'll grab you after dinner to help me categorize this stuff."

With a mock salute from Hunk and finger guns from Lance the three left her alone, hearing the loud crash of the lid popping off before the door closed. 

Lance took Shirogane by the wrist to bring him back to the room he now dubbed as theirs, stopping long enough at his desk to put down the books and fabric before practically throwing himself onto the bed whilst he got the food out of the bag he held, already loading up his tablet. "Come on, let's have lunch and watch something!"

"Whatever you want." Shirogane murmured, simply happy to move onto the bed, his third eye opening whilst he took out his own raw meat, digging into it. If Lance saw, which he did, he made no comment on the grotesque meal. 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sharpshooter wasn't sure when the tactician had fallen asleep beside him, his meal long since been eaten and the trash sent down the shoot. He was silent while he got up to turn on the lamp by the bed and pulled out one of theGarrison issued encyclopedias and bestiary, flipping through while he tried to remember exactly what Shirogane was.

Sagi-Shi

The picture that came up when he found the page was one of an average human, weight, height and diagram of bodily anatomy. The one of the species itself was larger by a good two feet with three eyes, some having up to five, with mass of tentacles coming from their stomach mouths and even some from where their sexual organs should be, though some were documented to have penis like genitalia. They were also known to come in shades of gray and sickly green, forked tongue, some with two, and teeth sharper than knives. Lance read about the history of discovering the Sagi-Shi, how they were a blood lusting species with no sense of familiar preservation for their own kind, only wishing to eat, and destroy, it was linked to a gland in their brains that brought out their primal desires to be fed and strong. There were none known to be docile, none known to have been able to live amongst the humans without being caught, and all had killed themselves either trying to eat the capturers or by bashing their heads against the containment glass. It then had Lance wondering, if they were all truly like that, the species at least discovered on earth in the early 00's, did that mean Shirogane was one that had advanced to the point where he could blend in without an issue? Did he evolve to survive?

Primal instinct...

The sharpshooter tapped his chin in thought, Shirogane did say he was scent oriented and that he had a deep hunger, surely there was more to it than that. Primal instinct dictated that a species needed to survive, eating and conquering certainly fell into that jurisdiction.

But what about mating?

Looking at Shirogane asleep on his bed Lance felt a shiver down his spine. Could he possibly satisfy the Sagi-Shi’s hunger in another way?

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dinner that night was fend for yourself, all that Allura required was seeing that they were all back on the ship after being scanned and washed up to avoid any possible pathogens. Though Lance and Shirogane ate in the cafeteria, Lance knew that it wouldn't be Shirogane's only dinner. He watched the man eat his napkin and water bottle when the others were gone, a smile on his face. He could feel the tension in the air and pressed a kiss to Lance's forehead, telling him that all would be well.

And the Sharpshooter believed him, waiting until well past midnight Tradingpost time before they dressed in black jumpsuits and wore facial scanner disruptors over their faces whilst they snuck out through the doors by the front of the helm. They locked it behind them, walking through the empty cargo bay, not a soul in sight. 

The door inside the main hall of the trading post was still unlocked, the enormous room with the vendors and booths were eerily quiet, the scents of food still lingering in the air, no longer as fresh. Lance could see some still closing up their shops, none saw them while they stuck to the shadows. Lance was told to wait for him by the back exit while Shirogane shimmied up through a vent, silent as a shadow, his body almost fluid in its movement while he worked to open the vent and vanished. The minutes that ticked by had Lance nearly neausas while he wondered where the other was, he was nearly spotted by a janitor, having to hide behind a crate to the point his legs were going numb and his stomach roiled at the thought of Shirogane taking some poor soul 

The muffled scream drew no attention surprisingly, there was no one around now to even hear it beside the sharpshooter. Another ten minutes passed until Shirogane returned, blood on his face and his stomach protruding just a bit whilst he licked his claw like hands, carrying behind him a black bag that resembled a trash bag. 

"Did...did you eat enough?" Lance asked, pale whilst he watched Sirogane carry the bag soon over his shoulder, the man nodding his head and offered Lance his hand, a hand that Lance did not take. While they walked Shirogane tried to reach for his hand only for Lance to pull away, shaking his head near frantically for the other not to touch him. When it came to slipping inside the ship they had to be much stealthier, knowing that Allura liked to do her rounds, they had to wait for her to head back to her room before they could make it to their own, the sharpshooter thankful the body had been stored in the air vent in the freezer, where it would not decay as and would be far from his thoughts.

Lance shucked off his jump suit and headed straight to bed after changing and taking care ofhis skin care routine, stopped however at the sight of Shirogane laying in his- their bed, void of clothes save for a pair of snug fitting briefs, his stomach no longer chubby from his... meal.

"You know, i did some research earlier about your kind." Lance spoke, suddenly feeling embarrassed and foolish with his earlier theory, standing simply in front of the other in only a pair of silken panties and tank top that barely reached his navel, his hair sloppily brushed;, he didn't care too much about it, he was getting ready to sleep anyways. "And, well, it says your kind are motivated by primal desires like you said. FIghting, eating, survival. But, well, at least for humans, that includes mating."

Shirogane's eyes raked over Lance's body, his forked tongue licking at his lips. "Are you saying you want to do that for me?"

"If it means you not eating the others...no, i can't even say that, i've been wanting you to touch me since i met you to be honest, you're everything i want, a whole checklist of my turn ons." Lance laughed softly, his cheeks red as he tried to saunter over to the bed, biting a finger while he looked down to the man who watched him closely. "So i was thinking, if you want, will you breed me when you get hungry?"


End file.
